{"id":640768,"date":"2026-04-30T15:02:08","date_gmt":"2026-04-30T15:02:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/640768\/"},"modified":"2026-04-30T15:02:08","modified_gmt":"2026-04-30T15:02:08","slug":"every-body-is-a-rugby-body-us-women-players-fight-for-inclusivity-after-trans-ban-rugby-union","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/640768\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018Every body is a rugby body\u2019: US women players fight for inclusivity after trans ban | Rugby union"},"content":{"rendered":"

When USA Rugby (USAR) updated its eligibility requirements<\/a> in February to ban trans women from competing, many players and fans were outraged. Within days, 300 people from around the country were on a call to discuss next steps. Dozens of teams posted messages on their social media accounts announcing their intention not to play without their trans<\/a> teammates. A fund<\/a> was even started to support affected players who wanted to pursue legal action.<\/p>\n

The trans-exclusionary policy hit especially hard in a sport that\u2019s one of the queerest and most gender-inclusive, where the guiding principle is \u201cevery body is a rugby body\u201d, said Cameron Michels, a PhD student whose research focuses on queer and trans players\u2019 experiences in women\u2019s rugby.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn the US, no one has cared about women\u2019s rugby enough to hold cultural boundaries around femininity and performance, so it\u2019s been perceived and experienced as a countercultural, queer space,\u201d Michels said.<\/p>\n

The new USAR criteria fall in line with recent policy updates from a swath of other national governing bodies in sports, including USA Hockey<\/a>, USA Fencing and USA Climbing, which were precipitated by bans from the US Olympic and Paralympic Committee, citing Donald Trump\u2019s 2025 executive order<\/a> for \u201ckeeping men out of women\u2019s sports\u201d.<\/p>\n

While most trans-exclusionary policies in sports face opposition, advocates say that no sport has seen the immediate, collective cry of resistance that US women\u2019s rugby has in the aftermath of its ban. Rugby for All<\/a> \u2013 a grassroots group of women\u2019s rugby players who came together in 2020, when World Rugby became the first international federation<\/a> to ban trans women \u2013 is leading the charge to ensure the sport keeps its culture inclusive. From educating through social media, to hosting virtual meetings, to having conversations with USAR itself, Rugby for All is doing all it can to keep rugby a welcoming space.<\/p>\n

\u201cTowards the end of last year, all of us said, \u2018We\u2019re getting to the worst point now, and it\u2019s encroaching upon our sport. Let\u2019s go on the offensive, and let\u2019s talk about why rugby is different,\u2019\u201d said Grace McKenzie, a Rugby for All organizer who played for the Berkeley All Blues and New York Rugby Club teams. \u201cWith where we\u2019re at with USA Rugby right now, we\u2019re trying not to be as anti-antagonistic as possible, so that we can potentially find spaces for us still to be able to include people.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2018Creative ways to work around\u2019 the ban<\/p>\n

The ban doesn\u2019t just affect the US national teams and elite-level competition; it also applies to local club teams that play for the joy and community found on the pitch or at the team brunch after the game. The new policy also created a third \u201copen\u201d division, to allow for people of any sex or gender designation to play. (USA Rugby and USA Club Rugby did not respond to requests for comment.)<\/p>\n

Sarah Levy, Ariana Ramsey, and Su Adegoke of the United States participate in a training session for the HSBC SVNS New York at Pingry School Basking Ridge Campus in Basking Ridge, New Jersey, on March 17, 2026. Photograph: NurPhoto\/Getty Images<\/p>\n

Generally, offering trans or non-binary athletes an \u201copen\u201d division is not seen as a fair and workable solution to trans-exclusionary policies, say advocates; it not only \u201cothers\u201d trans people into their own category, but there also likely wouldn\u2019t be any meaningful competition because the number of players would be low.<\/p>\n

During the emergency organizing meeting hosted by Rugby for All last month, several solutions were proposed: forming a new, independent league separate from USA Rugby (which would require a large logistical lift); a mass strike and a collective refusal to participate in any sanctioned, or USAR-regulated, play (known as \u201cthe nuclear option\u201d); or moving en masse over to the new open category in the hopes that it would force USAR to provide a functional, sanctioned and funded open division for the current 2025-26 season (based on social media posts, this was by far the most popular option).<\/p>\n

One major obstacle, however, is that USAR has no plan on how the open division will actually operate, according to minutes<\/a> from a March senior council meeting of USA Club Rugby, which runs USAR\u2019s club teams. The logistics of the competition process and governance are \u201cstill in development\u201d.<\/p>\n

Still, the momentum behind the teams moving to the open division together \u2013 effectively torpedoing the women\u2019s category while making the open category a viable and competitive division \u2013 is a creative and potentially groundbreaking model for other sports to follow, said Chris Mosier, an advocate who has helped many leagues write inclusion policies.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe open division as a third category \u2013 I hope it backfires,\u201d Mosier said. \u201cI love seeing athletes finding creative ways to work around it, and every athlete can look to rugby for inspiration for ways to resist.\u201d<\/p>\n

The fight for inclusivity continues<\/p>\n

Rugby for All organizers say that USAR should have been prepared for this. It\u2019s had since 2020, when World Rugby passed its ban, to prep for what would happen if a ban reached its shores.<\/p>\n

USAR\u2019s CEO, Bill Goren, said in a recent interview<\/a> that USA Rugby didn\u2019t feel pressure to pass a ban after Trump\u2019s executive order last year, since the organization isn\u2019t federally funded, but had it not complied with the Olympic policy to ban trans women in January, it risked being decertified as the national governing body for US rugby.<\/p>\n

For the rest of the 2025-26 season, most women\u2019s teams will not be able to move to the open division while maintaining their USAR-sanctioned status. On the other hand, as long as no one submits a challenge regarding the gender of another player, USAR said<\/a> it will not enforce the policy or require players to submit documentation or proof of their sex assignment.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf the whole community does not [report anyone], it obviously protects players, but it just sets up a \u2018don\u2019t ask, don\u2019t tell\u2019 policy within our sport,\u201d says McKenzie. \u201cThat still sucks, but it is better than other sports that I think are going to come up with enforcement mechanisms because they have less opposition coming from their communities.\u201d<\/p>\n

Most rugby unions the Guardian spoke with plan to allow their trans women players to remain on their teams, hoping that community solidarity holds and no grievances are filed.<\/p>\n

Erica Coulibaly (11), second from left, scores her second try in the first half of the inaugural game against the Bay Breakers at Infinity Park in Glendale, Colorado on Saturday, March 29, 2025. Photograph: Andy Cross\/MediaNews Group\/The Denver Post\/Denver Post\/Getty Images<\/p>\n

For some rugby unions, however, especially those in red states, the threat of losing their 501(c)3 non-profit or USAR-sanctioned status is too great a risk to allow their trans players to remain on women\u2019s teams.<\/p>\n

When the USAR policy was first announced, Rosie M checked in with her team, the San Antonio Riveters, to see what she should do. \u201cEveryone was assuring me that this does not change my ability to play with the team, that they would never go to a game where our trans players can\u2019t play,\u201d Rosie said.<\/p>\n

But a few weeks later, Rosie received a text from the team president informing her that, while she was welcome to come to practices and participate in friendlies, she wouldn\u2019t be able to compete as a member of the Riveters during competitive play. The team president cited a decision made by its union, stating that its 501(c)3 status could be revoked if it were caught fielding trans women on the team.<\/p>\n

\u201cTrans rugby players have been made second-class athletes by rugby unions who implement this policy without moving to create an open division,\u201d Rosie said. \u201cIt just feels like something I really love is being taken away.\u201d<\/p>\n

The rugby community isn\u2019t prepared to go down without a fight, though. Rugby for All is continuing to work behind the scenes to find solutions and put pressure on USAR to change its policy; currently, it\u2019s building a collective bargaining movement across the sport. The Northern California Rugby Football Union, meanwhile, is preparing for what to do if it needs to move all its women\u2019s teams to a new division or league. In North Carolina, the Charlotte Royals announced their intention to use the open division for any sanctioned matches they participate in.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s a lot of people who are passionate on the organizing side within our sport,\u201d said McKenzie, \u201cso it\u2019s not like we\u2019re going to see all these Instagram posts, and then we\u2019re going to stop talking about this and just accept what happened.\u201d<\/p>\n