A soccer team comprised entirely of transgender men has made its debut in a regional league in Spain, becoming the first all-trans squad in Europe to achieve federated status.
Spain’s first transgender soccer team makes debut in regional men’s league https://t.co/FE1AauwqF6 pic.twitter.com/BwGbDMXJe1
— Reuters (@Reuters) October 4, 2024
Via Reuters:
The team, named Fenix FC after the mythical bird symbolising rebirth, played some friendlies and seven-a-side games last season but now competes in the fifth tier in the northwestern region of Catalonia after being incorporated into a local club in the Barcelona suburb of Sant Feliu de Llobregat.
Hugo Martinez, 24, told Reuters he faced abuse when he began transitioning with gender-affirming hormone therapy and was forced to leave the women’s soccer team in which he had played.
“I was a boy playing in the girls’ team, but without a changed ID, so I wasn’t yet allowed to play with boys,” he said, recounting how other players, coaches and parents in the stands often hurled insults and threats at him.
Martinez put out the word online looking for other trans men who wanted to play soccer in a safe environment. It took him 3 years to form Fenix FC. The team’s first game of the season, on September 21, was a loss for the Fenix with a score of 19-0. But for the players, being able to compete in their favorite sport was the top prize. The Catalan FC tells Reuters that its men’s leagues have allowed players of any gender to participate regardless of their official identity for two years.
Spain now has a soccer team consisting entirely of transgender men and made its debut in a regional league, overcoming administrative challenges and prejudice in becoming the first such squad to achieve federated status in Europe https://t.co/MNEcdkSDp1 pic.twitter.com/JMAFrVYfJb
— Reuters Sports (@ReutersSports) October 5, 2024
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