20 Women Soccer Players Withdraw From League Over Transgender Players

The Flying Bats FC’s ease of victories had prompted an informal meeting of the Northwest Sydney Football Association to address physical safety concerns.

Players of the Orange County Soccer Club teach children soccer maneuvers at the Pretend City Children’s Museum in Irvine, Calif., on July 28, 2023. John Fredricks/The Epoch Times

Concerns over the physical safety of female-born football (soccer) players competing against transgender athletes have compelled at least 20 players to quit, according to a source from within a Sydney-based league.

Calling itself the “biggest LGBTQIA+ women’s and non-binary football club in the world,” the Flying Bats FC has made international headlines for fielding 5 self-identifying transgender players, with at least nine transgender players in the wider NorthWest Association.