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Team leaders of Los Angeles' Angel City FC expressed disappointment last week in what they call a "racist and transphobic" editorial from their teammate calling on the National Women's Soccer League to implement "gender standards." Elizabeth Eddy, an Angel City defender, urged the women's soccer league to create clear "gender standards" in an Oct. 27 New York Post editorial. Eddy offered two options: limit eligibility to players "born with ovaries" or conduct genetic testing. The NWSL does not have any openly transgender athletes, but did release a policy in 2021 that generally allowed for transgender women to compete as long as their testosterone levels are “within typical limits of women athletes.” It said eligibility determinations would be made before the start of the season and that it would review challenges individually. "The NWSL will only consider requests that are reasonable and made in good faith," the policy said. But the league told The Guardian that the policy had been abandoned in 2022 and that it "does not currently have a policy in this regard." Team distances itself from op-ed Angel City released a statement following the publication of Eddy's editorial that said it respected a player's right to express their views, but that it "does not reflect the opinion of an entire organization." "Since our founding, Angel City has remained committed to equity, inclusion, and belonging," the team said. "These principles will always guide how we show up for our team, fans, and community." The team posted the statement to its Instagram, which includes the emoticons for LGBTQ and transgender pride flags in its profile. On Friday, defender Sarah Gorden and goalkeeper Angelina Anderson addressed the topic during the team's media availability before their regular season game Sunday. Both women, who serve as captain and vice captain, told reporters that Eddy's sentiments do not reflect the other players'. "In this locker room, I've had a lot of convos with my teammates in the past few days, and they are hurt and they are harmed by the article," Gorden said. "And also they are disgusted by some of the things that were said in the article." Anderson agreed, adding that when she thinks of Angel City, she thinks about a team "founded upon inclusivity and love for all people." "Angel City is a place for everyone. It always will be," Anderson said. "That's how it was from the beginning. That's how it always will be, period." Gorden said the undertones of the editorial "come across as transphobic and racist." She pointed out photos of Orlando Pride's Barbra Banda, who also plays for Zambia's national team, that were used in the article. "The article calls for genetic testing on certain players, and it has a photo of an African player as a headline, and that's very harmful," Gorden said. "And to me, it's inherently racist, because to single out this community based on them looking or being different is absolutely a problem." Players rally around Banda Banda was one of the NWSL's leading scorers this season before being placed on the season-ending injury list in August. She's scored 25 goals since joining the league last year and was an integral part of the Pride's first league championship. She was also subjected to harassment over her gender and was one of four players barred from the 2022 Women’s Africa Cup of Nations over testosterone levels. Banda is a cisgender woman, and the Zambian Football Association was critical of the testing standards at the time. The Pride released a statement praising Banda on Tuesday, saying it looked forward to supporting her journey "as one of the many incredible athletes in our league." It noted her many accolades, including her second-consecutive FIFPRO World 11 award this week. Banda was also voted BBC Women’s Footballer of the Year 2024 and nominated for Best FIFA Women’s Player 2024 after a standout performance at the Paris Olympics that summer. "Barbra Banda is a superb teammate, player and role model, and we are proud that she represents the Orlando Pride, our fans and our community," the team said. Eddy: 'Reasonable people can disagree' Former ESPN anchor Sage Steele defended Eddy in a post on X, saying that Angel City’s co-captains were demonizing Eddy, “who simply wants to protect women, protect her sport.” Eddy said in a statement to NBC News on Tuesday that she loves her teammates and is supportive of them making their opinions known. She also said that since her column was published, she heard from current players "who agree with my points, but are too fearful to speak up." The op-ed was written, Eddy said, because she and others believe it's important for the NWSL to "maintain its identity and momentum." "As I said in the op-ed, reasonable people can disagree about where to draw the lines, but shutting down the conversation with name-calling and personal attacks does not serve the league or the next generation of female athletes well," Eddy said. Eddy has played for the NWSL on and off since being drafted in 2014, arriving in the league after graduating with a business degree from the University of Southern California. She played for the NY/NJ Gotham FC, Houston Dash and North Carolina Courage before Angel City signed her in 2023. She's also played on teams in Europe, Japan and Australia since starting her professional career.
