Footballer Kerstin Casparij Tells Cis Women to ‘Look out for Your Trans Sisters’

Manchester City defender Kerstin Casparij is using her platform to urge cisgender women to stand up for transgender people. Her call comes after Britain’s top court ruled in April that only biological women count under equality law. 

Casparij is both an activist and a rising star on the field. She played for FC Twente before joining Manchester City in 2022, where she quickly earned a spot as a first-team regular, according to her athletic profile. She represented the Netherlands at Euro 2022, the 2023 Women’s World Cup, and Euro 2025 and has made 48 international appearances.

Now, she is using her platform to defend trans women and to urge others to do the same.

Kerstin Casparij is calling on cisgender women to stand up for all women.

Casparij said trans women need allies “now more than ever.” “The trans existence within the queer community has always been such a prominent presence, and I know that if it were the lesbian community that was being targeted, the trans community would have fought for us and stood with us, as they have done countless times before,” Casparij told Pink News. “So, for all the cisgender women out there, I ask you one thing: please look out for your trans sisters, they need us now more than ever. Womanhood will overcome all.”

Casparij is widely recognized for her LGBTQIA+ advocacy. In announcing her as a patron, the LGBT Foundation praised her as “a vocal advocate for LGBTQIA+ equality” and a “role model for young queer people everywhere.” Casparij has since embraced this role openly. She participated in Manchester Pride alongside her partner, singer Ruth Brown. 

As Casparij put it on joining the charity, “visibility is important — not just on the pitch, but in every part of life…If my voice can help young queer people see that they belong, then that’s something I’m really proud to do.”

She added, “I’m excited to stand with LGBT Foundation to make sure all LGBTQ+ women have the space and support they deserve.”

Trans people are facing backlash worldwide.

Globally, backlash against trans people is intensifying. In sports, the Football Association announced that starting in June 2025, transgender women will be barred from playing in women’s football in England, according to Reuters. The Scottish Football Association followed with a similar ban for the next women’s football season. Other UK sports bodies have also restricted trans inclusion. England Netball will enforce a female-only policy by birth beginning in September 2025. The Guardian reported that the England & Wales Cricket Board recently extended its ban to recreational cricket.

Activists elsewhere warn of alarming violence and discrimination. In the US, GLAAD reports over 900 anti-LGBTQIA+ incidents from mid-2024 to mid-2025 — about 2.5 per day — and notes that 52% of those incidents explicitly targeted transgender people. Specifically, anti-trans attacks — the subset GLAAD flagged — included 26 injuries and one death. Compared to prior years, GLAAD noted a 14 percent increase in incidents targeting trans people.

Do you agree with Casparij that cisgender women should stand up for their trans sisters? Comment below!

The post Footballer Kerstin Casparij Tells Cis Women to ‘Look out for Your Trans Sisters’ appeared first on LBS.