Cricket: Transgender Women Players New Rules
By Prof Dr Ian Blackshaw
Under new Regulations, the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB), transgender women will be banned from next year in playing at the elite level of women’s domestic cricket.
However, transgender women will be allowed to play in tier three, the lower level of the game, and also in recreational cricket.
These new ECB Regulations follow the decision of the International Cricket Council (ICC) in November of last year to ban transgender women, who have gone through male puberty, from playing in international women’s matches.
The ECB stated that:
“Having considered wide-ranging views during the consultation, as well as in consultations conducted in 2023, and the relevant science and medical evidence, the ECB has decided that from 2025 it will adopt the same approach as the ICC for women’s professional domestic cricket.”
And added that:
“This provides consistency, given that a primary purpose of the top end of the domestic structure is to produce international players.”
The ICC is due to review its Rules within two years, but the ECB has not announced whether they will do the same once the new Regulations come into force.
The participation of transgender women in sports events continues to be a controversial issue for many sports’ governing bodies!
Prof Dr Ian Blackshaw may be contacted by e-mail at ‘
