Amidst of the controversies surrounding trans athletes’ participation in competition, Germany has passed a new rule.
The German Football Federation (DFB) declared on Thursday that athletes can now choose which team they would like to play on – with the men or with the women.
In the declaration, transgender, intersex, and non-binary players now can choose which gender they would like to represent.
The regulation will be widely applied to all levels of German football including youth, futsal, and amateur levels. It will come into action in the upcoming 2022-23 season.
“It applies to transgender players who can now switch at a self-determined time or remain initially in the team in which they’d been playing previously,” the DFB said.
“As long as the sporting activity does not affect the health of the person while they are taking medication, the person can take part in the game, which is why the new regulation excludes doping relevance.”
Reacting to it, Sabine Mammitzsch, who oversees German women’s and girl’s football, welcomed the rule as she said that the issue needs clarity from the governing body.
“The state and regional associations, but also relevant people at grassroots level, have been signaling for a long time that there are uncertainties with how to accommodate transgender, intersex and non-binary players.”
“Therefore, they very much welcome the introduction of a national, comprehensive rule on the right to play.”
According to the DFB, the rule is a product of a trial run since 2019. They also added that the trial of the rule results in no impact on the competitive integrity of the competitions.