A teenage female footballer with ADHD and learning difficulties has been handed a ban after questioning whether some of her opponents were men.
The 18-year-old’s six-match ban comes just months after a 17-year-old girl with suspected autism was reprimanded in similar circumstances.
In the latest incident, the teenager is alleged to have asked the referee if all the players were ‘eligible’ to play and described the player with a number 10 on their shirt as ‘obviously a man.’
She is also alleged to have asked opposition players the same question, after claiming she did not receive clarity from the referee about the ‘extremely aggressive’ players.
Transgender female players aged 16 or older are allowed to play against girls and women under Football Association rules, though the policy from 2007 has been criticised and is being reviewed.
The charge was brought against the teenager under these same rules.
A National Serious Case Panel banned the teenager for six matches, two of which were suspended, and required her to undergo an online education course, while her club was handed seven disciplinary points, The Telegraph reports.
The panel decision has not been made public.
A teenage footballer with ADHD and learning difficulties has been handed a ban after questioning whether her adult transgender opponents were men (file pic)
In November, a 17-year-old girl with suspected autism was banned for six games and found guilty of ‘discrimination’ after asking a transgender player with a ‘beard’: ‘Are you a man?’
A National Serious Case Panel delivered the verdict after the girl’s comments during a friendly against a trans-inclusive football club in July, though she has denied being transphobic.
The club complained to Kick It Out, an organisation standing against discrimination in football, and the county FA charged her with saying, ‘Are you a man?’, ‘That’s a man’, ‘Don’t come here again,’ or similar comments.
According to the girl, she had asked the referee about her opponent’s eligibility as she was worried for her safety after multiple ‘overly physical challenges’, while the official did not hear anything he considered discriminatory.
In a statement as part of her defence, the seventeen-year-old claimed she was ‘confused’ as her opponent was not wearing the opposition’s kit and was decked out in ‘jewellery and sunglasses’.
That statement continued: ‘The moment the player clarified they were transgender, I respected their answer fully, dropped the situation and immediately shifted my focus back to the game before seeking guidance from the referee.
‘At no point was my question meant to be hurtful or malicious as I only intended to seek clarity in an unfamiliar situation. Knowing now that the player was transgender, I understand that there were better ways to approach this question.’
The girl added that she had ‘raised a concern about the risk of a serious injury as a 17-year-old girl playing against a biological male who was much larger than me and a very physical player, which was possibly a safety issue as I did not want to get dangerously injured right before the start of a new season’.
Fiona McAnena, director of campaigns at Sex Matters, described the decision to impose a ban on the teenager as ‘disgraceful’
Of this latest case, Fiona McAnena, director of campaigns at Sex Matters said: ‘It’s disgraceful that another teenage girl has been suspended for daring to challenge the presence of a male player in a women’s game.
‘The FA has punished her for asking a question that matters for her own safety, and for fairness for all girls.’
The FA’s current transgender policy is based on a testosterone suppression model, and uses ultimate discretion as to whether a transgender woman can register or not, allowing them to manage them on a case-by-case basis
Blood testosterone levels must be within a specified range and hormone treatment verified annually.
There are no transgender women currently playing in the professional football, or on the pathway for the professional game from any of the Home Nations.
Former culture secretary Lucy Frazer argued that the FA should consider banning transgender players to remove ‘unfair’ competitive advantages.
‘I think it’s very important that women are able to compete against women and there’s an inherent unfairness, that if you’re not biologically a woman, you have a competitive advantage,’ she said.
‘And I think a number of sports have looked at this very carefully and come to the decision that it’s not appropriate to have women competing against people who are not biologically women.
‘We’ve seen that in rowing. We’ve seen that in swimming. And I would encourage other sporting bodies to look at that very carefully.’
In a statement on this latest ‘complex’ case, a spokesperson for the FA said: ‘We regularly review our processes in this area and we will always look to take the appropriate steps to challenge improper conduct in our game.’
