Team out and proud: Contact point LGBTI in football
THEMES
– Participation in sport
– Policies regarding sex and gender
– Fighting discrimination
– Raising awareness of staff,
– employees and volunteers, referees
TARGETED OBJECTIVES
– Creating an inclusive environment in football for members of the LGBTIAQ+ community
– Introducing new inclusive regulations for trans, inter* or non-binary (TIN) players
MAIN INITIATIVE
Team out and proud (Top) is a competence and contact point for sexual and gender diversity in football. It is a joint project of the German Football Association (DFB) and the Lesbian and Gay Association (LSVD). The DFB finances one full-time position and provides some material resources to support the work.
Top aims to create an inclusive and discrimination free space for all LGBTIQA+ people in football and acts as an advisor for organised football in Germany, from state football
associations to professional clubs. One of the main objectives has been to introduce inclusive regulations for all people of all genders to participate in football matches at an amateur level. Until the 2022/2023 football season, the German football regulations were strictly organised in a binary way and did not foresee a standardised procedure for trans, inter or non-binary (TIN) people to play in their chosen team e.g., during transition.
Development of the good practice: in 2017, the Berlin Football Association (BFV) was the first association in Germany to address the possibility of introducing new regulations for TIN players that would determine a standard and fair procedure for all genders and guarantee the right to play without discrimination. The trans* and inter* community was involved in developing the new regulations, and other state football federations followed the BFV in passing the new regulations for TIN players shortly after its passing in 2018 in Berlin.
The DFB took up the discussion in 2021, after witnessing the individual state football associations amending their regulations for TIN players. The proposal to introduce the new inclusive regulations nationwide was organised and promoted by Top, submitted to the DFB and passed for the 2022/2023 season in amateur sports, creating the right and to play football in a self-determined way for all TIN players in Germany.
“The regulation sets out that players with the gender status of ‘diverse’ or ‘not specified,’ or players who have had their gender reassigned, can decide for themselves in the future whether they should be granted the right to play for a women’s or men’s team. This also applies to transgender players, who can now switch teams at their own discretion, or remain in the team in which they currently play for. As long as the player’s health is not affected by playing sports while taking medication, they can continue to participate in the sport. Under the new regulation, this would not be considered as
doping.”
BENEFICIARIES
– People from the LGBTIAQ+ community who are active in football
– Football associations, federations and clubs that want or need to deal more intensively with the question of LGBTIAQ+ inclusion
IMPACT OF THE INITIATIVE
The largest German sports federation, the DFB, with more than 7 million members has passed new regulations to allow TIN players to participate in sports, setting an inclusive example for all sport organisations in Germany. The new regulations also sparked the interest of the UEFA and FIFA. Both organisations invited the DFB and Top to elaborate on the new regulations for TIN players.
Further, the new regulations had an impact in the trans* community in particular. Reportedly, inquiries regarding the regulations and the right to play has largely increased since the DFB’s announcement, also due to the media exposure which massively supported the reach and promotion of the new regulations.
It is no understatement to say that the DFB’s introduction of trans, inter and nonbinary people’s right to play has an influence on football nationally and internationally, as well as for other sports. Additionally, it is important to note that the German Hockey Federation (DHB) had already followed the example of the BFV in 2021, adapting their regulations and allowing TIN players to participate.
SUSTAINABILITY AND TRANSFERABILITY
The concept of a competence and contact point for sexual and gender diversity in different sport organisations, working solely for the purpose of an LBGTIQ*+ inclusive space and closely connected to the queer community is transferable to other organisations, given that financial resources are available to finance such positions.
It is important to note that although Top is advising the DFB, it is not part of the structure as the contact point itself is passed in the LSVD. A few state sports federations already have similar contact points across sports but as they are not specifically listed as contact points, they are less visible.
DFB: New regulation on the playing rights of transgender, intersex and non-binary
persons (in English)
WEBSITE OR RELATED RESOURCES