Sports bodies move to protect female category following threat of legal action
- Sports bodies change eligibility policy to protect the female category after formal warning from Alliance Defending Freedom
- Legal letters warned that allowing men to participate in women’s sports violates the Equality Act and the For Women Scotland Supreme Court ruling
- Equality and Human Rights Commission’s updated Code of Practice also affirms biological sex-based categories
LONDON (19 AUGUST 2026) – Two sporting bodies have moved to protect the female category by updating their eligibility policies following a threat of legal action.
The Football Association of Wales and the Royal Yachting Association have amended their eligibility policies, which will now be based on biological sex rather than self-identified gender, following a formal warning from legal experts and sex-based rights advocates.
The organisations were among the 10 sporting bodies to have been issued with a formal warning by the Christian legal advocacy organisation Alliance Defending Freedom, which noted that they were violating the law by allowing men to participate in the female category.
ADF explained that governing bodies that continue to permit biological males to compete in female categories contravene the Equality Act 2010, as interpreted by the Supreme Court in the landmark For Women Scotland Ltd v The Scottish Ministers ruling. The letters warned that failure to amend the relevant policies could expose FA Wales and other bodies to immediate and substantial legal liability.
“Every policy change that protects the female category and reflects biological truth is a victory for women and girls across the country, whose opportunities, safety and enjoyment of sport have too often been sacrificed for the sake of a false ideology.”
— Sharron Davies MBE, Olympic medallist and Conservative peer
The letters explained that section 195 of the Equality Act permits sex-based rules in gender-affected competitive activities where differences in physical strength, stamina or physique may affect fairness or safety. They further set out how the Equality and Human Rights Commission’s updated Code of Practice requires participation in sex-affected sport to be applied on the basis of biological sex, and that recent applications of the Supreme Court’s ruling indicate that average male biological advantages are relevant even in non-contact sports such as pool.
The Football Association of Wales released a statement saying that following “an extensive review of the legal framework” – which “considered the 2025 UK Supreme Court judgment, the Equality and Human Rights Commission Code of Practice and the wider legal context” – that “the FAW Board has agreed that eligibility for affiliated competitions reserved by sex will be determined based on sex assigned at birth”.
Similarly, the Royal Yachting Association recently released a new “Transgender and Non-Binary” eligibility policy, which states that“[f]or events where the RYA… are the Organising Authority and have discretion around categories, the RYA shall apply any sex based rules or arrangements relating to participation on the basis of biological or birth sex.”
However, the policy also says that “clubs and class associations may choose to set their own eligibility criteria for their events”, which risks leaving fairness, safety and legal compliance to the discretion of local groups.
Other sporting bodies sent formal warnings by ADF have also started, continued, or agreed to review their policies. In May 2026, Swim England announced a review of its eligibility policy, while parkrun stated it is reviewing its policy. Rounders England is expected to complete a review and consultation process in November 2026.
Olympic medallist and Conservative peer, Sharron Davies MBE, commented: “The Football Association of Wales and others have taken important steps to restore safety and fairness in women’s sport, in line with the law, science, and common sense.
“Every policy change that protects the female category and reflects biological truth is a victory for women and girls across the country, whose opportunities, safety and enjoyment of sport have too often been sacrificed for the sake of a false ideology.
“Whether they are elite athletes or participating at the amateur level, women and girls deserve to play sport in a safe and fair environment. Allowing men into the female category fundamentally undermines this, and it is shameful that some sporting bodies persist in ignoring the law, scientific evidence, and government guidance. These bodies must act immediately to amend their policies in line with biological reality.
“I welcome the significant progress that has been made – but it is not enough. As long as women and girls are exposed to harmful situations and subjected to an unfair playing field, they will continue to lose out or opt out. The law, the Supreme Court ruling and the EHRC Code of Practice are crystal-clear: there is no excuse for inaction or for ambiguous policies that do not go far enough to protect women and comply with the law.”
Robert Clarke, Director of Advocacy at Alliance Defending Freedom in London, said: “As a matter of law, the definition of sex is not up for debate. We have seen in the UK and beyond that allowing men into the female category erodes women and girls’ opportunities and places them at risk.
“The law and Britain’s highest court both recognise this, and the updated EHRC guidance reaffirms the critical importance of preserving single-sex spaces, services and sporting categories. In light of this, sporting bodies have a responsibility to ensure their policies reflect biology, not ideology.”
“While some have updated their policies accordingly, others remain in breach of the law and continue to face substantial legal liability while being an increasingly obvious outlier.
“Alliance Defending Freedom remains committed to protecting women’s sports in the UK. Across the world, the tide is turning in favour of fairness, safety, and truth on this issue – and it is high time for UK sports bodies to follow suit.”
Single-sex provisions required by law
Sent in April, the legal letters required sporting bodies to align their policies with the landmark 2025 Supreme Court ruling in For Women Scotland Ltd v. The Scottish Ministers, which unanimously held that “woman” refers to biological sex in the Equality Act 2010.
The letters also cited the safeguarding risks of allowing males to use female changing rooms, the clear scientific evidence that males have ineradicable physical advantages over females, and the risk of discrimination claims by female athletes who face greater risk of injury and diminished opportunities.
Sporting bodies faced renewed calls from ADF and sex-based rights advocacy groups to correct their policies following the publication of the Equality and Human Rights Commission’s updated Code of Practice, which states clearly that “arrangements relating to participation in a gender-affected activity… should be applied on the basis of biological sex… [and] trans people should not be included in single-sex or separate-sex competitions for the sex with which they identify.”
The Code of Practice further mentions that “participants or prospective participants may bring claims of direct or indirect sex discrimination about… rules or arrangements” that allow athletes to compete in a category not in line with their sex.
The guidance also applies this approach to single-sex spaces such as changing rooms, noting that “a legitimate aim…for providing a separate or single-sex service could be ensuring the safety of women or the privacy and dignity of women”.
