Footballer who was banned after questioning transgender player’s inclusion wants apology from FA

A teenage amateur footballer who was banned by the Football Association over comments she made to a transgender opponent has called on the sports body to apologise.

Cerys Vaughan, who was 17 when the FA sanctioned her for improper conduct last year, said the case has impacted her life.

Ms Vaughan said she asked the rival player if they were a man during a friendly match during a women’s game in Lancashire. When she realised the player was a transgender woman, she says she spoke to the referee about the player’s inclusion in the game.

She said she raised concerns about fairness and safety, and asked whether the player was allowed to play in the match.

Ms Vaughan said this was overheard by the other team’s captain who said this wasn’t an appropriate question, and told her to “keep my transphobia off the pitch”. She added: “I didn’t understand why she was saying that”.

She was later charged with a breach of FA rules and handed a six-match ban, four of which were suspended, the BBC reported.

The broadcaster reported that the original ruling about Ms Vaughan’s conduct has now been quashed and the FA appeal board had ordered a new process to take place.

However, the FA said in a statement that, though the appeal board ordered the case be heard again, the process was now at an end as the complainant had withdrawn the complaint due to personal reasons.

This was due to concerns about the complainant’s own personal safety and wellbeing as a result of the coverage of the case.

Ms Vaughan, who is now 18, told BBC Sport: “It’s definitely impacted my normal life a lot.”

She said there was “no reason for the FA to put me through all this”, adding: “They said I wasn’t guilty anymore and they dropped my charges and cleared my record.”

The FA announced in early May that they would ban transgender women from women’s teams, following a Supreme Court ruling that said the term “woman” in the Equality Act refers only to a biological woman.

The change in policy came just a month after the FA had said that it would continue to allow transgender women to play in the women’s game as long as they had reduced their testosterone levels.

In a statement, the FA said: “We can confirm that this disciplinary case has now been closed, as the complainant has chosen to withdraw from the process due to personal reasons.

“All relevant parties have been informed of this outcome and no further action will be taken. To protect the players involved, and to respect the confidential details included, we are not in a position to publish further details about this case”.