Razeen Gutta
Transgender, intersex and non-binary footballers in Germany will be able to choose whether they want to play in the men’s or women’s teams, the German Football Federation (DFB) have announced.
There is no universal rule in sports regarding the participation of transgender or non-binary athletes — meaning that each federation can formulate its own ruling.
Just a few days ago Fina, the world governing body for swimming, voted against transgenders participating in women’s competitions.
Instead, Fina announced that an “open” category will be introduced — resulting in backlash from LGBTQ+ communities.
Initially, footballers in Germany were bound by personal identification data. However the new ruling, which applies to the amateur, junior and futsal rulebooks, states that players can now “take their own decision”.
For the past four years, identification documents in the German civil registry have given the option for people to register as “diverse” or “no reference” alongside the male and female categories.
Since this option affects football, the DFB have stated that it has “made the need for clear rules more important.
“The state and regional associations, but also relevant people at grassroots level, have been signalling for a long time that there are uncertainties with how to accommodate transgender, intersex and non-binary players,” said Sabine Mammitzsch, who oversees women’s and girls’ football at the DFB.
“Therefore, they very much welcome the introduction of a national, comprehensive rule on the right to play.”
Image source: @TheGuardian
