Recent rulings by the U.S. Supreme Court show that the issue of transgender people in sports remains a hotly debated topic. In most of the USA, only cisgender women are allowed to participate in women’s sports. These rulings raise concerns that, in the future, all U.S. states will be required to enact laws prohibiting transgender women from participating in women’s sports.
Court's Ruling
Recent decisions by the U.S. Supreme Court (Court) West Virginia v. B.P.J. and Little v. Hecox have once again raised the issue of transgender women in sports. These cases concerned whether Title IX and the Fourteenth Amendment’s Equal Protection Clause prohibit states (in this case, West Virginia and Idaho) from stipulating that only cis women may play on women’s sports teams.
The Court ruled that states can prohibit trans athletes from competing on women’s sports teams. This decision holds that there is no law under which schools have to allow participation in sports teams based on gender identity rather than biological sex.
The Court concluded that there are concerns about whether there is an equal opportunity for women and girls to participate in sports. According to the Court, safety and fairness are at risk if trans women compete with cis women in sports. It follows that the Court’s decision gave schools the right to determine eligibility for women’s and girls’ sports based on biological sex.
Situation of Trans Athletes in the U.S.
Even though trans people are just 1–2% of the U.S. population, there is a strong focus on them. Moreover, trans athletes make up only 0.002% of athletes at U.S. colleges. These figures indicate that the issue is not as widespread as some politicians and media suggest.
In the U.S., there are 27 states that ban trans athletes from competing in sports based on their gender. On the other hand, 21 states allow trans athletes to play on teams based on their gender. There is a concern that, in the future, states will be required to ban trans athletes from participating in sports teams based on their gender.
Importance of Supporting Queer People
This recent Court ruling shows that the rights of trans people and queer people are still a political issue. Despite the fact that queer people are a minority, (mostly conservative) politicians, according to experts, like to portray them as enemies and a threat to society. Trump’s rhetoric provides a clear example of this approach. He particularly uses transphobic rhetoric—he does not talk about trans women, but about men. He argues that he is protecting women and girls so they can compete in safe and fair sports. However, this denies their identity and dehumanizes them, which leads to discriminatory politicians hiding behind a facade of ‘morality and ethics.’
The Trump administration provides funding to anti-trans and anti-LGBTIQ+ organizations. It has also denied the existence of transgender identities. According to an executive order passed by Trump, there are only two genders that cannot be changed—female and male. Trump justifies this measure by citing the transphobic view that trans women are men who want to gain access to women’s spaces.
In addition, transgender people are not being issued new passports, and newly issued passports list a sex designation that does not correspond to their gender identity. This change may restrict their ability to travel abroad. Furthermore, the Trump administration has banned schools from using trans students’ correct pronouns.
Americans with authoritarian tendencies believe that trans people represent a threat to society. Political leaders first mobilize citizens by portraying transgender people as a threat, which then helps them undermine democracy and curtail the rights of other groups that do not conform to the values of the majority. That is why attacks on the rights of transgender people are important for everyone, as they can lead to the infringement of others’ rights.
Sources
Levin, S. & McMenamin, L. (2026, July 1). What to know about the US supreme court’s ruling on trans athletes. The Guardian. Available from: https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/jul/01/us-supreme-court-trans-athletes-ruling.
Nelson, J. D. (2026, July 28). How the Trump administration’s rhetoric promotes anti‑transgender views. The Conversation. Available from: https://theconversation.com/how-the-trump-administrations-rhetoric-promotes-anti-transgender-views-285444.
Nteta, T., Eichen, A., Rhodes, J. & Cuthbert, L. (2025, June 11). Antagonism to transgender rights is tied to the authoritarian desire for social conformity – not just partisan affiliation. The Conversation. Available from: https://theconversation.com/antagonism-to-transgender-rights-is-tied-to-the-authoritarian-desire-for-social-conformity-not-just-partisan-affiliation-257431.
Office of Transgender Initiatives (2025, March 27). Trans Women in Sports: Facts Over Fear. SF.gov. Available from: https://www.sf.gov/trans-women-in-sports-facts-over-fear.
Orion, R., & K. Sosin (2025, March 5). All the ways Trump wants to exclude trans people from public life. The 19th. Available from: https://19thnews.org/2025/03/trump-anti-trans-executive-orders/.
Supreme Court of the United States. (2026). No. 24-43 West Virginia v. B. P. J., and No. 24-38 Bradley Little, Governor of Idaho v. Lindsay Hecox. Available from: https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/25pdf/24-43_2b35.pdf
The White House (2025, January 20). Defending women from gender ideology extremism and restoring biological truth to the federal government. Available from: https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/2025/01/defending-women-from-gender-ideology-extremism-and-restoring-biological-truth-to-the-federal-government/.
The White House (2025, February 5). Keeping Men Out of Women’s Sports. Available from: https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/2025/02/keeping-men-out-of-womens-sports/.
Ziegler, A. R. (2026, July 1). US Supreme Court upholds West Virginia, Idaho bans on transgender athletes in women’s sports [příspěvek na blogu]. Available from: https://sogiesc.law.blog/2026/07/01/us-supreme-court-upholds-west-virginia-idaho-bans-on-transgender-athletes-in-womens-sports/.
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Trans people in sports remain a political issue. Duhový přechod, autorka: Adéla Krejčířová, 15. 6. 2023.
