Grassroots women’s football raising thousands of pounds to keep trans teammates playing
Crowdfunders for trans-inclusive football attracting support, with £10,000 already raised by Goal Diggers FC; some teams and leagues say they won’t affiliate with FA after blanket ban on trans women in women’s game; broadcaster Shebahn Aherne says she feels issue has been “clouded completely”…
Having been pushed further to the sidelines by the FA and SFA trans bans, inclusive football is crowdfunding in a bid to keep community teams together.
Goal Diggers FC have already raised more than £10,000 following Monday’s 12-mile sponsored walk across London, which culminated in a show of solidarity outside Wembley Stadium and the delivery of an open letter to FA chiefs.
Half of the GDFC pot will go to trans-led charity Not A Phase, and half into the coffers of the club, which says it will be “ring fencing a portion of that money to directly fund internal initiatives and socials for our trans women members.
“The rest will go towards keeping our club financially accessible and a safe haven for our trans and gender non-conforming members.”
The grassroots outfit for women and non-binary players, which celebrates its 10th anniversary this year, has been a huge success story in the capital.
GDFC has a dedicated training hub at Haggerston Park (they had to campaign for years before they were able to secure regular weekly slots at the facility); a partnership with New Balance; and a reputation that continues to inspire numerous other teams to either start up or keep going.
There is no chance of the club reneging on its proudly inclusive values because of a legal interpretation made by the Supreme Court, and GDFC founder Fleur Cousens says that overwhelmingly, grassroots women’s teams are in firm agreement and are prepared to exist even further outside the mainstream if necessary.
She told The Athletic: “What will happen is so many teams will stop being affiliated with any FA league and just start a different footballing world – one that is better.”
The Bristol Football Casual League has already said it is working to make itself “fully independent” from the FA. Meanwhile, the London Women’s Saturday Football League, in which GDFC enters teams, insists it will not be affiliating next season.
GDFC’s open letter to the FA had around 1,600 individual signatories, while so far more than 70 grassroots women’s football clubs, teams and leagues from across the UK – including several that currently play in FA-affiliated leagues – have issued public statements opposing the bans.
⬇️ Click here to see a list of all teams, groups etc who have come out against the bans…
50 Shades of Green, Argyle Pride, Arsenal Women Supporters Club, Babe City FC, Baesianz FC, Baller FC, Barnes Stormers FC, Bayern Munchies FC, Beasts from the East FC, Big Kick Energy FC, Birmingham Blaze FC, Black Footy Babes, Brighton Seagals FC, Bristol City Panthers FC, Bristol Football Casual League, Brockwell Bullets FC, Brockwell United FC (open letter), Camden Eagles FC, Camden and Islington United FC, Camden Road WFC, Camp Hellcats FC, Cardiff Dragons FC, Chaos FC, Charlton Invicta FC, Chelsea Pride, Chirps FC, Clapton CFC, Club Level Collective, Clubs United, Deptford Ravens, East End Phoenix FC, Easton Cowgirls FC, Edinburgh Uni Women AFC, Enjoy FC, Fare network, Football v Homophobia, Foxes Pride, Gals FC, Gay Gooners, Gender Goals FC (open letter), GFSN, Glasgow Community FL, Glasgow Saints, Goal Diggers FC (open letter), Goals Aloud FC, Hackney WFC, Hackney Wick FC Women, High Ballers FC, Hot Goal Summer, Hot Shots United, Ibrox Pride, Inclusion Plus FC, Inclusive Football Collective, Inter Melanin FC, Isca Apollo FC, Jericho Athletic FC, Kop Outs!, LEAP Sports / FvH Scotland, Leftfooters FC, Leon FC, Lez Be United FC, LGBeeTs, London Falcons FC, London Freedom FC, London Titans FC, London Women’s Saturday Football League, Lush Lyfe FC, Maghull Inspires FC, Manchester Laces, Manchester Vixens FC, Marching Out Together, Mersey Marauders FC, Millwall Romans FC, Newcastle Panthers FC, Old Spotted Dog Sticker Archive, Olympian Infinity FC, Peaches FC, Pride in Football, Proud Baggies FC, Proud Lilywhites, Proud Sky Blues, Proud Valiants, RainbOs, Rainbow Blades, Rainbow Devils, Rainbow Owls, Rainbow Royals FC, Rainbow Saints, Rainbow Spireites, Rainbow Toffees, Republica Internationale, Rover and Out, Scouting 4 Goals FC, She’s A Baller, Sheffield Wednesday WSG, Shepherd’s Booters FC, Slay FC, South London Laces FC, South London Women FC, Southwark Stars Disability FC, South West Saints FC, Sporting Duet Academy, Stargazy FC, Steps FC, Stonewall, Stonewall FC, Team Brave, The AF League, Tower Hamlets Women FC, Trans Enby FC, Tribal FC, TRUK United FC, Tyneslide Community FC, Union Manchester FC, United Cornwall FC, Vicky Park Queens, Victoria Park Vixens, Village Manchester FC, West London Tigers FC, West Yorkshire Whippets FC, Whippets FC, Women’s Football Collective (WFC), Woodingdean Wanderers WFC, York St John Uni LGBTQ Society, Yorkshire Terriers FC
Similar posts have been published by an additional 50 or so teams, fan groups and organisations, including the Football v Homophobia campaign (FvH) which has 2,000 signatures on an ongoing statement of support for trans women playing women’s football, and backing from more than 150 teams and groups.
The response is being galvanized further by the launch of a Trans-Inclusive Community Football Fund, to be jointly managed by LEAP Sports and Pride Sports, who together run FvH in Scotland, England and Wales.
The Fund falls under the Football v Transphobia strand of the wider anti-discrimination campaign and “will support the development of unaffiliated football opportunities for trans people…. Existing clubs, teams and leagues will be able to apply to grow their capacity, as well as new start-ups.”
TRUK United FC, the UK’s trailblazing trans and non-binary inclusive club, has started a GoFundMe in a bid to provide more chances to play for its community of players who are spread around the country.
The crowdfunders also serve as calls to action while campaigning efforts continue to get the FA and SFA bans reversed. Both governing bodies had longstanding policies which operated on a case-by-case basis, which allowed trans women to play women’s football if they met certain criteria.
There were no trans players known to be active in the higher tiers of women’s football in England and Scotland. In the lower, grassroots divisions, some trans women had played with eligibility for many years, while others had recently been approved by an expert panel and were still subject to “match observation”.
‘I want to play with my trans teammates’
The community bond was tangible on Monday. In brightly coloured chalk, messages were written outside Wembley Stadium at the end of the GDFC’s long walk across London.
“I thought the FA was meant to be FOR ALL,” read one. “FA, don’t be cruel,” said another.
The vast majority of those present were LGBTQ+ women who play in the grassroots game. In the shadow of the arch, they stood in solidarity with their trans teammates.
@copa90 Yesterday, we joined @Goal Diggers Podcast on their 12-mile march from Haggerston to Wembley to deliver an open letter to the FA urging for a reversal of the decision to ban transgender women from playing in women's football. Along the way we chatted with community members to find out how the decision has impacted them, what they would like to see going forward, and the importance of togetherness and allyship. #footballtiktok #football #footballstories ♬ original sound – COPA90
Earlier in the day, FA chief executive Mark Bullingham had told GDFC that the governing body’s policy “has had to change… we have to follow the law.”
However, many feel the FA Board was too eager to tear it up, considering the Equalities and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) has not yet launched its Code of Practice consultation, which will then have to go through a Parliamentary process, which could become protracted.
The EHRC said in its interim update last month that rules about competitive sports would be addressed “in due course”.
Given the prevailing mood, it can be expected that the blanket exclusion of trans women from playing women’s football, and probably all women’s sports, is set to be written into the new Code, despite the wording that reads “if this is necessary to uphold fair or safe competition, but not otherwise” that exists in the 2010 Equality Act.
However, organisations are highlighting how Cabinet Office guidelines recommend 12 weeks for such a consultation, which would have at least given time for those in favour of inclusive football to argue for the existing FA and SFA policies, and work with the associations to try to alleviate the consequences of these bans.
Depressingly, some social media accounts are increasingly targeting players from within the group of less than 30 trans women in England and Scotland who met the criteria and had approval, as well as some who were playing unaffiliated football.
These accounts deliberately publish images of the players before and after their transition, while deadnaming and misgendering them, often including details of the clubs and leagues they play in.
In complete contrast, figures within the grassroots women’s football community are engaging with the mainstream media and humanising the topic by sharing their experiences on the pitch.
GDFC’s Becky Taylor-Gill told Sky Sports News: “I think it’s really important for us to come together as the community that is directly being affected by this to say, this is not what we want.
“I play in a team that is trans inclusive. I’m a cis woman, I want to play with my trans teammates.
“There are a lot of people out there who are saying they are doing this to protect us. I don’t need to be protected. I want to play in leagues that are trans inclusive – we’ve gathered more of our community to come together and say this ban is cruel and should be overturned.”
Echoing those comments was another GDFC player, football consultant Liz Ward, who posted a video on Instagram in which she said “we’ve got to fight the bullies… we’ve got to pull our socks up and get this done.”
Her teammate Sammy Rees added: “The women’s game has changed my life completely and I think it’s so incredibly unfair that we’ve been removed from it.”
One of the most powerful posts was by teenager Emily Waldron, who was recognised for her advocacy work with a standing ovation at the Football v Homophobia Awards held in Glasgow in March.
Writing on Instagram, the 16-year-old explained how she had told her teammates that this would be the last month in which she would be able to play with them.
“My teammates were really shocked and upset but put their feelings aside to support me,” she wrote. “I can’t thank them enough for all of the love, support and kindness they showed me.”
Also offering support this week was broadcaster Shebahn Aherne, who expressed her sympathy with trans women and their teammates in an episode of her regular YouTube series with Republic of Ireland international Ruesha Littlejohn.
Aherne said she felt the significant contrasts between the professional women’s game and the inclusive grassroots scene had been lost in the discussion.
“They’ve clouded it completely,” said Aherne. “I think it’s an absolute travesty for a little percentage of people, a minority of people to be made to feel this way.
“I just think it’s so sad… that’s the crux of it.”
Further reading…
‘Let Them Play’ – statement of support for inclusion of trans women in women’s football (Football v Homophobia)
Grassroots footballers protest FA’s ban on transgender women: ‘We are determined to keep going’ (Caoimhe O’Neill, The Athletic)
The FA Might Ban Trans Women From The Beautiful Game – But Grassroots Football Won’t (Nali Simukulwa, Vogue)
LISTEN to the ‘Screamers: A Women’s Football Podcast’ discuss the trans bans
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Sports Media LGBT+ shares in our community’s disappointment caused by the UK Supreme Court ruling about the legal definitions of words in the Equality Act.
As a network group and as a digital publisher, Sports Media LGBT+ has always been fully and proudly inclusive. We strive to provide welcoming, respectful spaces for all members, working alongside our many industry allies.
Though the ramifications of the ruling are still unclear, it is understandable that trans and non-binary people, and particularly trans women, are deeply concerned at this time.
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It is encouraging to see the supportive statements issued by many clubs, groups and organisations. Ahead of IDAHOBIT and Pride Month, we hope the sports media will recognise the importance of showing clear allyship all year round.
Trans rights are human rights. Always.
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