The Darts Regulation Authority (DRA) has officially banned trans players from competing in women’s tournaments, introducing a new regulation.
The DRA is the governing body of Professional Darts, tasked with ensuring good governance within the sport. With the announcement of the new regulation, it was established that “only biological females should be eligible to compete in women’s tournaments regulated by DRA Rules”.
While the DRA stated that it “seeks to be inclusive” and said “all players – irrespective of their biological sex, legal sex, and/or gender identity” can participate in the tournaments, the new rule effectively bans trans women from participating in women’s events.
The decision comes after the DRA completed a review of its Trans and Gender Diverse Policy, a process that began in 2025. The governing body said the new rules were based on legal advice, which considered the UK Supreme Court ruling that established that the definition of ‘woman’ in the Equality Act is exclusively based on biological sex.
The DRA also commissioned Dr Emma Hilton, a developmental biologist, to conduct a report on the matter. Hilton is on the board of trustees for Sex Matters, an anti-trans group.
Following the DRA’s decision, Noa-Lynn van Leuven, who was the first trans woman to compete in darts at the World Championships in 2024, said the move has “effectively retired her”
“I just got an email and apparently I just got retired, not by choice but because I am no longer allowed to compete,” Van Leuven stated in a video posted on Instagram.
“The DRA just decided that trans women are no longer allowed in women’s events which basically means I am out.
“Everyday it is getting harder for trans people to exist, to compete. If you think this stops with me, it doesn’t. We just want to be.”
She heavily criticised the decision, calling it “another huge hit for the trans community”. The move from the DRA comes shortly after the International Olympic Committee (IOC) banned trans women from competing in female events at the 2028 Olympic Games, hosted in Los Angeles.
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