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Brett Favre speaks out on bill to keep trans athletes out of women's sports: 'Clear biological difference'

'There’s a clear biological difference between men and women,' he said

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NFL Hall of Famer Brett Favre made his stance clear on a bill being pushed through Congress that would keep transgender athletes out of women's and girls sports. 

Favre posted on X Friday, resharing a Fox News interview with Sage Steele and Riley Gaines crediting Sen. Tommy Tuberville, R-Ala., for introducing the Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act in an effort to keep transgender athletes out of women's sports nationwide. 

"Good on those officials trying to fix this. There’s a clear biological difference between men and women," Favre said in his caption of the video. 

Brett Favre testifying

Former NFL quarterback Brett Favre testifies before the House Ways and Means Committee at the Longworth House Office Building Sept. 24, 2024, in Washington, D.C. (Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)

Tuberville's measure would maintain that Title IX treats gender as "recognized based solely on a person’s reproductive biology and genetics at birth" and does not adjust it to apply to gender identity. It would ban federal funding from athletic programs that allow biological men to participate in women's and girls sports.  

This would apply to biological men and boys who identify as transgender and seek to participate in events and leagues for women and girls. 

The measure is co-sponsored by 23 Republican senators.

It is not the first time Favre has weighed in on the issue of transgender athletes in women's sports. The former NFL quarterback spoke out against New Zealands's transgender weightlifter, Laurel Hubbard, who became the first transgender woman to qualify for the Olympics in 2021. 

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Tokyo Olympics Weightlifting Laurel Hubbard

Laurel Hubbard of New Zealand waves after a lift in women's weightlifting at the 2020 Summer Olympics Aug. 2, 2021, in Tokyo, Japan.  (AP Photo/Luca Bruno)

Hubbard competed in men's events before coming out as transgender in 2013.

"It's a man competing as a woman," Favre said in an episode of his podcast at the time, which is now discontinued. "That's unfair. It's not fair for a man, even if this person wants to be a woman or feels compelled. If you want to become the opposite sex, that's fine. I got no problem with it. But you can't compete against … males cannot compete against females.

"If I was a true female — I can't believe I'm saying that — and I was competing in weightlifting and lost to this person, I would be beside myself."

In that podcast episode, Favre also spoke out against transgender BMX rider Chelsea Wolfe, who was selected as an alternate to Team USA's BMX freestyle event. Wolfe was accused of talking about burning an American flag on the medal podium in a social media post, Fox News Digital previously reported.

Favre said Wolfe shouldn't be allowed to compete. 

"I wouldn't have her participate in my Olympics. Go participate for somebody else," Favre said. "To say that is such a slap in our country's face. I can't believe this person can be allowed to participate for our country.

"She should be banned."

Favre has previously worked with members of the LGBTQ community, including gay former NFL player Esera Tuaolo. Favre appeared on Tuaolo's podcast in 2020 to discuss head trauma from playing football.

However, Favre was also accused by some of showing anti-transgender behavior during the 2015 ESPY Awards. During the show, Caitlyn Jenner took the stage to accept the Arthur Ashe Award for Courage, and Favre was seen slowly clapping. The nature of Favre's slow clap drew backlash from some with pro-LGBTQ beliefs on social media. 

But polls today show the majority of Americans oppose transgender inclusion in women's sports, which was a key campaign issue for Donald Trump and other Republicans in the recent cycle. 

favre

Former NFL player Brett Favre speaks onstage during SiriusXM at Super Bowl LIV Jan. 31, 2020, in Miami, Fla.  (Cindy Ord/Getty Images for SiriusXM)

Nearly 70% of Americans say biological men should not be allowed to compete in women's sports, according to a Gallup poll last year.

In June, a survey conducted by NORC at the University of Chicago asked respondents to weigh in on whether transgender athletes of both sexes should be permitted to participate in sports leagues that correspond to their preferred gender identity instead of their biological sex. 

Sixty-five percent answered that it should be never or rarely allowed. When those polled were asked specifically about adult transgender female athletes competing in women’s sports, 69% opposed it.

national exit poll conducted by the Concerned Women for America (CWA) legislative action committee found that 70% of moderate voters saw the issue of "Donald Trump’s opposition to transgender boys and men playing girls and women’s sports and of transgender boys and men using girls and women’s bathrooms," as important to them. 

And 6% said it was the most important issue of all, while 44% said it was "very important."

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Jackson Thompson is a sports writer for Fox News Digital. He previously worked for ESPN and Business Insider. Jackson has covered the Super Bowl and NBA Finals, and has interviewed iconic figures Usain Bolt, Rob Gronkowski, Jerry Rice, Troy Aikman, Mike Trout, David Ortiz and Roger Clemens.

via January 11th 2025