Trans women belong in rugby.
Full stop.

July 23, 2020

(This is the full version of our statement shared on Facebook and Instagram.)

Since founding our team a year ago, DC Revolution Rugby has opened our club to players who identify all across the gender spectrum, all of whom are equally welcome, valued, and loved. We are disheartened by and completely denounce World Rugby’s recent claim that transgender women should be banned from playing rugby. The idea that trans women are somehow different or are unwelcome in our sport is a transphobic notion rooted in fear and an ugly perception of gender that is simply outdated and untrue.

Rugby is a sport of camaraderie, grit, and friendship. Regardless of gender identity, everyone who plays this sport goes into it knowing the strength, dedication, and tenacity demanded of each player who steps on the pitch. Every single rugby player enters a match knowing they might come out with an injury; that they will compete against players bigger, stronger, and more skilled than they are. We have seen our teammates walk off the field with broken bones, bloody noses, and concussions, always ready to return to the pitch and do it all over again. When we go up against a team, we respect the other players as incredible athletes that we have to defend against for a win. The biology of the players across from us on the field does not matter. Contrary to World Rugby’s claims, the gender of the person on the other side of the field does not change whether or not we are going to get injured during a match.

We have never encountered a women’s rugby player who was not immediately empowered by this sport. The toughness and determination required of this sport is what draws people to it: we play rugby to feel strong; to push ourselves beyond our limits; to feel the energy and support of our teammates on the field. Rugby is a sport that gives players an incredible feeling of agency and connection to their bodies that no other sport matches.

To take this incredible gift - this amazing sport loved by so many - away from transgender women is cruel and discriminatory. Transgender women are among the most marginalized, at-risk groups in the LGBTQ+ community and across the world. Everyone should be able to benefit from rugby - especially those who are most in need of support from this incredible community.

The Revolution stands with our transgender sisters and all members of the transgender community. Rugby is a sport that should be enjoyed by ALL people, regardless of gender identity. In the coming months, we will work with teams in our bracket, the broader women’s rugby community, and the transgender community to ensure that all people can continue to participate in the sport we all love.

Rugby for All.

#WithYou,
The Revolution