On October 26, Angel City FC’s Elizabeth Eddy posted on X for the first time in nearly two years, weighing in on a report that the National Women’s Soccer League had quietly removed its inclusion policy for transgender and intersex athletes. Her piece, which the New York Post republished in full the next day, broadly advocated for a ban on transgender athletes from the NWSL.
Eddy wrote that without such a ban to protect “the integrity of women’s sports,” the league would lose “its identity and its momentum.” However, her concerns seem to conflict with the league’s actual performance. Now in its 13th season, the NWSL is a highly competitive, commercially powerful, and integral part of the global women’s soccer landscape. Its momentum appears strong, with viewership growing every season and an expansion to 16 teams set for 2026, which will nearly double its size in five years.
The op-ed suggests a looming threat from a pipeline of transgender players, a scenario for which there is no evidence. In the league’s history, only two openly transgender athletes—Quinn and Kumi Yokoyama—have competed out of more than 1,000 players. Both have since left, and no out transgender players are currently in the NWSL or any other professional US league. Furthermore, NCAA rules already prohibit trans athletes in college soccer, and multiple peer-reviewed studies have shown they hold no inherent biological advantage over cisgender athletes.
While Eddy cited the English FA’s recent ban on transgender athletes as a model, that policy is believed to affect only about 20 grassroots players out of 5.5 million. In the US, the rhetoric surrounding the issue has fueled transphobic and racist attacks against cisgender players. Orlando Pride’s Barbra Banda and Kansas City Current sisters Temwa and Tabitha Chawinga have endured online abuse rooted in gender testing standards or because they are perceived as not being feminine enough.
The New York Post’s decision to run Eddy’s op-ed with a photo of Banda, a frequent target of such attacks, drew sharp criticism, including from Eddy’s own teammates.
“That article does not speak for this team in this locker room,” Angel City FC captain Sarah Gorden told reporters. “We don’t agree with the things written… mostly the undertones come across as transphobic and racist as well. The article calls for genetic testing on certain players, and it has a photo of an African player as a headline. And that’s very harmful.”
Even if one were to accept the premise of Eddy’s concerns, they are eclipsed by numerous other challenges that genuinely affect the NWSL’s integrity and momentum. The league is currently being sued by six former San Diego Wave employees over allegations of racial and disability discrimination and sexual harassment. Player care protocols have also come under scrutiny after incidents involving on-field medical emergencies and disputes over extreme heat procedures. Meanwhile, the NWSL faces growing competition from financially powerful European leagues that are beginning to attract its star players.
Transgender athletes are not a factor in any of these tangible issues. The debate over their inclusion appears to be a distraction from the real challenges the league and its players face.
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