A transgender soccer player quit a women’s league after opposing teams refused to play against him.
Fran Needham, 30, earlier this week withdrew from the South Yorkshire-based Rossington Main Ladies ‘for the foreseeable future’ after players withdrew from facing him over safety concerns last weekend.
Now the row has taken a new twist as it has emerged that Needham was previously a prostitute who apparently specialised in ‘cheerleader/schoolgirl’ scenarios.
He conceded that this had happened but, while acknowledging his colourful past, Needham insisted this should have no bearing on his eligibility to play women’s soccer.
And he told Daily Mail his opponents were intent on forcing him out of the game by ‘dragging up the past.’
Needham said he now works full time in a regular job and is no longer engaged as a sex worker, pointing out that his profile on a sex work website is now redundant.
He said: ‘It is not an active profile, I accidentally left it up but it’s something I stopped doing before I began playing soccer.
‘It is something I have done in the past, I will agree and I am not going to lie about that. However everyone has a past and it shouldn’t be brought up out of context.
‘I stopped doing this well before I joined the team and had anything to do with the FA.
‘My personal life is completely separate and distinct from my soccer life. I have a full time job now and that is part of my past.
‘All I want to be able to do is play soccer or at least support the team that I played for. I have had tremendous support from my teammates and I’m grateful for that.’
It’s unclear when the sex worker profile was active and Needham declined to discuss further.
His angry reaction came after thousands of likes for posts revealing how Needham had previously advertised his services as a ‘Pre op trans girl to make your dreams come true.’
Posting a picture of himself in schoolgirl garb, he wrote: ‘Transgender girl before surgery ready to fulfil your fantasies! He can also play the role of a mischievous and entertaining schoolgirl revealing an exciting surprise hidden under his skirt.’
He also suggests clients may wish to play the role of a ‘naughty schoolgirl’ who has been sent to him for ‘punishment.’
The profile has horrified the community in South Yorkshire where Needham was forced out of the Sheffield and Hallamshire Women’s League because ‘terrified’ opponents refused to play against him.
A source close to the women’s soccer community said: ‘It is clear the birth male playing on the ladies team has been a sex worker.
‘This is a massive safeguarding concern.
‘It’s worth bearing in mind this birth male would be sharing changing rooms and single sex spaces with young females.’
Needham is now in the process of instigating legal action against the FA.
In a statement posted to the Facebook page of his club, Rossington Main Ladies, based just outside Doncaster, he says his side has ‘faced challenges from teams unwilling to play against us while I am on the field.’
He adds: ‘This unfortunate circumstance has prompted me to investigate pursuing a case of discrimination, as I believe it represents a breach of a code of conduct regarding diversity and inclusion, as well as safeguarding of adults in soccer established by both the Soccer Association and the Sheffield and Hallamshire Women and Girls League.’
The boycott from other teams in the league came about when a player was injured in an on-field incident involving Needham.
The opponent is said to have suffered a broken knee when blocking a powerful strike from the Rossington player.
Needham has only played two games in the league this season, both last month, but hasn’t lined up for the club since it became mired in the controversy.
A manager from an opposing team said it was clear after five minutes that Needham was transgender.
The manager said ‘It was obvious. Unfortunately, the FA allowed it to happen but didn’t let anyone know. He’s quite a big strong player. People have refused to play because they are worried about the safety of the players.
‘My players were backing out of challenges as psychologically it’s quite a big thing, when you are playing against a biological man it’s quite scary. They were terrified.’
The manager of one of the teams to refuse to play explained the boycott, saying: ‘I have 16 and 17 year old players playing for me and their parents weren’t too keen to put their welfare at risk.
‘It is a welfare issue rather than a transgender issue.’
