The Football Association has announced that transgender women will be banned from playing in women’s football in England from June.
The decision from the FA comes after the Supreme Court judgment earlier this month which ruled that a woman is legally defined based on her biological sex.
The FA had allowed transgender women to play in women’s teams on a case-by-case basis, with players over the age of 16 who were male at birth required to show their blood testosterone is below a particular level.
However, the FA has now changed its stance and transgender women will no longer be able to participate in women’s football from June 1.
A statement from the FA on Thursday morning read: ‘As the governing body of the national sport, our role is to make football accessible to as many people as possible, operating within the law and international football policy defined by UEFA and FIFA.
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‘Our current policy, which allows transgender women to participate in the women’s game, was based on this principle and supported by expert legal advice.
‘This is a complex subject, and our position has always been that if there was a material change in law, science, or the operation of the policy in grassroots football then we would review it and change it if necessary.
‘The Supreme Court’s ruling on the 16 April means that we will be changing our policy. Transgender women will no longer be able to play in women’s football in England, and this policy will be implemented from 1 June 2025.
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‘We understand that this will be difficult for people who simply want to play the game they love in the gender by which they identify, and we are contacting the registered transgender women currently playing to explain the changes and how they can continue to stay involved in the game.’
There are not believed to be any transgender women playing in women’s professional football in England or Scotland.
The FA says there are around 20 transgender women playing at grassroots level this season.
Earlier this week, the Scottish FA introduced a similar change after it announced that only players who were female at birth will be allowed to play in women’s football over the age of 13 in Scotland.
A ban on transgender women in women’s sport has also been introduced in athletics, cricket and rugby.
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