FA to ban men from womens football

[LivelyFinch]

Sanity is starting to prevail.

What a gift the news is for the Sun

Typical Guardian (and I am a long term fierce lefty ). Yesterday they appeared to tuck the FA story away within the football section on the website. I had to hunt for it.

Today, one of their top stories is how LGBT+ people are in crisis after the ruling.

Yes. I sent her a thank you message through her website when the ruling came out.

No idea if she gets them but it made me feel better. Even if it's just the scenario I imagine for JKR of an assistant saying 'you've had 235 thank you from women this week ' it must provide reassurance that they are indeed the same ones in this madness.

Nice to see that the Sun seems to have a better grasp of biology than some of the “highbrow” publications.

I’m so pleased at this, and all the other sports that are following suit.

I am in my sixties and, unusually for the time for girls, I loved football, watched it, but also wanted to play. I wasn’t allowed to play with the boys. There were no opportunities for me to play - no local girls teams, nothing.

that the sport is now so readily available for women and girls, and the growth in popularity of the professional game for women, makes me very happy. It is such great news that no girl or woman will lose the opportunity to play in a women’s team because of a man who thinks he’s a woman taking that place

And Sharron was utterly brilliant to listen to today, on 🔥 as ever. Thank you Sharron if you’re on here!!!

Nailed It!

What a headline

Yes the broadsheets are tying themselves up in knots rather than saying it as it is.

I'm amazed anyone with a vague interest in football would read promote or quote the s*n

Well they do, so be as amazed as suits you.

Plastic?

Why are the LGB and, probably, most of the Q+ in crisis? Did they really need the fragrant Tiffany tearing down the wing and destroying the opposition?

Eta. You think the G and some of the Q+ would be thrilled to give him a game. Crisis averted!

lol, you’ve got to hand it to them 😂

The ECB has now done the same as the FA. Wonder how long before India starts wailing because they also used to be a top level cricketer.

BBC News - ECB bars transgender women from women's cricket
www.bbc.com/sport/cricket/articles/c0l0rje87y5o

As pp posted

Transgender women have been banned from competing in all levels of women's cricket with immediate effect, the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) has announced.

In an update to its transgender regulations, the ECB said "only those whose biological sex is female" will be able to participate in women's and girls' cricket.

The ECB say transgender women and girls can continue playing in open and mixed cricket categories.
The policy change follows a UK Supreme Court ruling on 15 April which said the legal definition of a woman is based on biological sex.

Thank you to FWS and everyone for winning this

All these organisations etc who until recently claimed this subject was so difficult and therefore let's just let the men into everything are falling like dominoes.

Turns out it's not so difficult to understand after all! Who'd have thunk it!

Turns out it's not difficult when your insurers tell you that allowing transwomen to play will invalidate your cover or means huge increases in costs. It's only complicated when the cost is women's safety and ability to participate in fair sport

What a relief. Girls in my class frequently come off worse playing lunchtime football with their male peers. They're only 10 and 11 years old. I shudder to think of the damage women footballers could come to when playing men. This is very sensible.

Is there any evidence that the insurance companies have stated this?

In my experience of reviewing the insurance provided to sports organisations provide for tiny payouts in limited circumstances... I don't know of any large payouts or situations where anyone has challenged this..

I would love to know of any information on this...

@ChateauMargaux

I don't have the information you asked for, but I do know (via Ross Tucker's podcast) that potential insurance costs and payouts were a major factor in causing World Rugby to review the evidence about males and females playing together.

Perhaps the difference with the cases you are thinking of is that the players have consented to the risk by getting on the field of play, and the risk is proportionate because they are of the same sex. Whereas women have not consented to play against men and the risk of injury to women from contact injuries is much higher when they play against men? Just theorising.

The potential insurance payouts are often cited as a reason but I see no evidence that any players would have a claim ... I would love to proven wrong.

Ross Tucker is American, the litigation culture is different in the US.

I would love to see details of how a UK player would have a claim and how this would be brought through the courts.. Health and Safety Executive, Criminal Liability, Insurance claims... The only one I could find was a semi professional player who broke his ankle and sued the opposition club for loss of earnings of £20k (for 18 months out of football) and costs which amounted to £135k.

Did any insurance companies advise sporting organisations to change their policies like @Chrysanthemum5 claims? If so.. I would love to know more...

Excuse my language but it's an absolute fucking disgrace female safety wasn't considered until insurers pulled the plug on cover.

As I get older I realise more and more everything is about the money.

@ChateauMargaux Sharron Davies mentioned the FA’s insurer in one of her interviews. Sorry I can’t remember which one as I’ve listened to them all!

@ChateauMargaux I can't say for definite as they will never admit it but sporting organisations allowing men to play women's sport was always going to put them at risk of being sued and the SC judgement just clarified that

Professor Ross Tucker is actually South African, just by the by. I cited him because he is an eminent sports scientist and was one of the experts which World Rugby invited to contribute when they had a very thorough consultation about their transgender policy in 2020(?), which resulted in their policy of keeping males out of the women's game. The potential insurance liabilities were a big part of the motivation to get the policy right. World Rugby is not a US body.

He's been on platforms with Emma Hilton and I believe they co-authored a paper (with others), but I'm a bit hazy as to the title.