The World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association (WPBSA) have introduced a new policy banning trans women from competing in women’s snooker tournaments, marking the latest move by a sports governing body to restrict trans participation.

Under the updated eligibility rules, only players “born biologically female” will be permitted to compete in women’s events.

The governing body confirmed the update in a public statement, noting that its policy had been under review in light of evolving legal and research contexts. They wrote: “Our position has always been that the policy would be subject to immediate review should there be future ratified research findings or changes in guidance from appropriate sources.

“These cases and the studies relied upon as evidence have changed the landscape, leading to the review.

“The main change from the previous policy is that the WPBSA considers snooker to be a ‘gender-affected activity’ for the purposes of Section 195 of the Equality Act 2010 and that only biological female players may compete in women’s tournaments governed by the WPBSA,” the post also outlines. “The WPBSA is an inclusive organisation and all players irrespective of their biological sex, legal sex and/or gender identity  may compete in open tournaments.”

While trans women are excluded from women’s competitions under the new rules, the WPBSA emphasised that all players remain eligible for open tournaments. The policy also includes specific guidance for trans men, stating that a “trans man player who does not use testosterone as part of male gender-affirming treatment” may compete in both open and women’s events.

The decision follows last year’s UK Supreme Court ruling on the legal definition of a woman, which declared that the legal definition of a woman is based on biological sex. The ruling has been widely criticised as trans-exclusionary and continues to influence policy decisions across sport.

However, the rollout of the WPBSA’s updated policy has drawn criticism from within the sport. 12-time world champion Reanne Evans raised concerns via X over a lack of communication from the governing body during the review process.

“So women snooker players (of all levels) and their teams have been asking if a decision has been made with no reply,” wrote Evans. “Players have quit/stopped entering events because of no ruling. I was sent this tonight, and no one knew about it. Why no announcement/email to let players know?”

The update comes a year after the WPBSA first announced it would review its policy.