Trans Players Would Be Welcome In Women’s Football, Says Former England Striker
Former England and Chelsea striker Eniola Aluko is confident that a trans player would be welcome in women’s football.
Aluko said: “It would be contradictory of me to say everyone is welcome, whatever sexuality, race, belief, and not include transgender people in that.”
Earlier in 2020, World Rugby organised a forum to discuss and debate trans participation in the sport. Women’s rights groups claim that safety concerns are strong for players, even if trans women lower their testosterone levels.
“If we ignore the difference in strength between trans women and women that will put women at risk in terms of safety on the pitch as well as fairness in sport so there’s a worry here that necks will get broken, there’ll be concussion issues,” Nicola Williams, a Fair Play for Women spokeswoman, said.
According to ‘i News’ the football association allows for girls and boys to play together until the age of 16. After the age of 16, players must be separated according to gender. However, when it comes to trans players, they deal with the decision on a case-to-case basis but insist that “gender identity should not be a barrier to participation in football”.
Asked if she believed trans players would have an unfair advantage, Aluko replied: “I don’t know. It’s a meritocratic sport, I was a really quick forward, I think a lot of people, a lot of defenders, would say I had an unfair advantage. Advantage is subjective.
“What I would say is: everyone in women’s football should be welcome. It’s as simple as that.”
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