Out and About: LGBTQ Sports Newsletter SEPTEMBER
Out & About
LGBTQ+ Monthly Newsletter: September!
Welcome to Out & About - your monthly newsletter of LGBTQ+ sports and knowledge. Brought to you by Liz Ward.
September has rolled in and with it shorter days, longer nights, the Premier League, the WSL and a bunch of inclusion stories, delivered straight to you.
You might notice I took a month off - sadly I wasn't on a yacht in Marbella (this time), but I have been keeping busy across the pond - more on that another time.
This month:
Back Pages: WNBA and Eligibility policies, Post World Cup affection, and a Dwayne Wade Podcast...
The Training Ground: Understanding IOC Policy Changes
The Kitbag: Mastering Pronouns
Why am I receiving this? We've either worked together before, or I'm available to work with your club via the Premier League Lifeskills Programme or on the DiSE Programme this year. Not booked a session yet? Get in touch!
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Back Pages: News Stories to Know
What's been happening in the WNBA?
The WNBA (Women's National Basketball Association) has been under a pretty fascinating media storm lately. I'm going to break it down for you, and explain why it might be relevant for your work...
The WNBA has grown massively in the last few years. Similarly to women's football here in the UK, players can now boast celebrity-like status, with millions of followers. One such player is Sophie Cunningham, a shooting guard for the Indiana Fever. She went viral in late July, following her comments to ESPN, in relation to trans people. She said the following:
“I got a lot of negative feedback about me hating trans. And I'm like, 'I never once said that….I think that I am here to extend love. But I also think with that love is truth, being honest. And I want to protect young girls in a locker room, or young girls in sport who shouldn't have to go against biological men”
What followed was a media thunderstorm. Every subsequent game has featured protest for and against Cunningham's comments, other players across the league sharing their own trans-inclusive stance and even ex-NBA players saying they will declare for the WNBA draft, to highlight the potential gaps in current WNBA policy.
Why is this interesting to think about? Well, aside from the unchecked transphobia, endless racism, misogyny and misogynoir that has boomed since the article was released, I think Cunningham's own actions are interesting to analyse, when thinking of an athlete response. In subsequent interviews she's refused to elaborate on her stance, and asked to 'focus on basketball'. She's expressed that her comments were never intended to cause harm, but equally she's been slow to call out the racism that's been committed in support of her.
For athletes, and the players you support, it's a welcome reminder of impact and intent. Her comments may, or may not have intended to cause this media storm (although sidenote: she's gained a million followers), but in any case the impact has been far reaching and in many avenues, destructive.
We live in a world where athletes, especially women, can and should use their platform. How they do that, and who they impact should be considered, despite the intention...
Post World Cup Affection...Hey, Uh, Is it Gay to have friends? (Short answer, no)
I was shocked but not surprised at the homophobic response to Marcos Llorente and Ferran Torres hanging out in Ibiza, post winning the world cup. The news even made it to online celebrity gossip blog Deux Moi (screenshot below). Now whilst this wouldn't usually be something to include in a news round up about LGBTQ+ inclusion, the response to the image pushed Marcos Llorente to make a statement:
"It puzzles me that in 2026, two men showing affection towards each other is still a topic for discussion, but when I see the prevailing mentality, I understand it...for me, there is nothing more manly than a man who is confident in himself and not afraid to show his affection for his friend"
Llorente's statement names the 'prevailing mentality' we see across football, in which homophobia is still so rife, and even showing the smallest bit of affection is seen as something to be ashamed of. Llorente showed leadership in his rejection of the sentiment, something I hope younger players take note of!
Podcast: Dwayne Wade and Locker Room banter
You might know Dwayne Wade as being an NBA Hall of Famer, triple NBA Champion, Miami Heat Legend and husband of superstar Gabrielle Union. You may not know, that Dwayne Wade's daughter, Zaya, is a young trans woman. On the recent Conversations with Cam podcast, Wade shares his experiences. As the family navigated Zaya's transition, Wade speaks about finding the jokes, banter and at times toxic masculinity in the Miami Heat dressing room no longer something that he could take. He even spoke to teammates about it, who also changed their behaviour having heard about Wade's challenges in supporting his daughter.
It's a great listen, and really exemplifies the changes we can make, especially when becoming an ally becomes really personal.
The Training Ground: Understanding IOC Policy changes
The IOC (International Olympic Committee) brought out a policy in March 2026, that will require all athletes wishing to compete in the women's category to take a once-in-a-lifetime 'sex' test to establish if athletes possess the SRY Gene, which can be found on the Y Chromosome. Confused? Let me break it down:
What is it? A cheek swab, that determines if you possess the SRY Gene, which is found on the Y Chromosome. Biologically, men have XY chromosomes and women have XX chromosomes, so this test will end the presence of any trans women in women's events. However, it will also mean that if you are intersex (I also break down these identities in last month's newsletter) - you may lose your sporting career...
What does it look like in our context? This change will only affect women, so if you look after boys & men, this won't be as relevant. For women however, this will affect any athlete looking to compete in olympic sport, and will likely impact all athletes who wish to enter qualifying competitions/events.
What do I need to do? At this stage, we haven't got enough information to know exaclty how this will be rolled out. In the meantime, get yourself up to speed with the testing process, find out how your NGB will be supporting athletes and for those who are likely to be tested/on an olympic pathway, think about what kinds of education interventions can be delivered.
I deliver an athlete 101 that describes the policy, and how it will impact athletes. Get in touch to learn more!
The Kit Bag: Mastering Pronouns
We use pronouns every single day. When we do, in 98% of instances, we make an assumption of people's pronouns, and we're bang on. Men use he/him and women use she/her pronouns, and it's all easy peasy.
But what about that 2% of times when we get it wrong?
Sometimes, people may be non-binary. That means that the label of being a 'man' or 'woman' doesn't sit right, and actually the identity of being 'non-binary' feels far more comfortable.
But this throws a spanner in the works - what do we do about pronouns?
For the vast majority of non-binary people, they tend to use the pronoun they/them as a singular pronoun. This can take some time getting used to, but a little effort goes a long way.
If you have non-binary people in your world - getting their pronouns right can be a real boost. If we put that into an athlete context, those tiny affirmations can have a big impact. And those impact can translate to wins on the field/pitch/court!
Let's Get To Work!
It's a new academic year! So get in touch to book your session for the 26/27 season.
lizmaryward@gmail.com
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