Former United States football star Megan Rapinoe has spoken out in support of trans athletes, arguing that efforts to exclude trans women from sport are part of a broader attack on women's rights and empowerment.
The two-time World Cup winner made the comments during an appearance on US talk show The View, where she challenged claims that restrictions on trans participation in women's sport are primarily about protecting female athletes.
Rapinoe said anti-trans campaigners were using sport as a "wedge issue", exploiting public concerns about safety and fairness to target a vulnerable minority.
"They're going after trans people in sports, and they're using this as a wedge issue because we love sports," Rapinoe said. "And, you know, we don't want our little girls to be unsafe in sports."
The former US national team captain argued that some proposed policies risk policing how women look and present themselves, while subjecting girls and young women to intrusive scrutiny. She pointed to legislation being debated in Washington State that would require sex verification measures for some athletes.
Rapinoe went further, claiming the wider political campaign against trans inclusion ultimately harms all women.
"They don't like women in sports because it helps us with confidence and power," she said. "It's just great for you physically and all of it. But it's an attack on women in society."
Her intervention comes amid renewed debate in the United States after Indiana Fever basketball player Sophie Cunningham reiterated her opposition to trans women competing in female sport. Cunningham said she believed it was important to protect girls and women in sport and stood by previous comments on the issue.
Rapinoe has long been one of the most prominent advocates for LGBTQ+ rights in sport and has repeatedly called for greater inclusion of transgender people. Supporters of trans inclusion argue that sport should remain accessible to all and that transgender athletes deserve the same opportunities to participate as everyone else, while governing bodies continue to develop eligibility policies aimed at balancing inclusion and competition.
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