It appears that fewer Americans support transgender women competing in women’s sports now than they did two years ago.
Last month, Gallup conducted a telephone survey of 1,011 U.S. adults that found 69% of Americans believe that transgender athletes should be restricted to sports teams that conform with the gender they were assigned at birth, compared to 62% who believed that in 2021.
The survey also found that just 26% of Americans support transgender athletes playing for teams matching their gender identity, compared to 34% two years ago.
Obviously, both of these numbers indicate that Americans are less supportive of transgender athletes playing in leagues and teams of their choice. Jeff Jones, a senior editor for Gallup, explains that it seems Americans see the issue as a matter of competitive fairness than of transgender civil rights.
“That’s a surprising finding,” Gallup said. “It definitely looks like most people see it as a fairness issue. Even Democrats are divided, and we see that independents, who are generally supportive of LGBTQ policies, are also opposed overall.”
While support for transgender participation in sports fell across the board, it did raise in one particular demographic: young adults. Respondents between the age of 18 and 29 saw their support for transgender athletes being able to choose their sports team rise, climbing 35% two years ago to 41% now.
