Written with the help of artificial-intelligence tools and checked by automated controls.
The Women's Tennis Association (WTA) has quietly adopted a new eligibility policy requiring all professional circuit players to undergo a genetic test screening for biological sex. Revealed on July 19 by American journalist Ben Rothenberg on his platform Bounces, officially confirmed by the organization the following day, and effective July 1, 2026, the measure is an absolute first for an independent professional women's league.
A swab, a career
In the event of a positive result, a supplementary medical evaluation is triggered before the WTA rules on eligibility.
The mechanism relies on a single analysis of the SRY gene (Sex-determining Region Y), a DNA fragment located on the Y chromosome that directs, in the fetus, the development of male sexual characteristics. The sample is taken via buccal swab, blood draw, or saliva sample, and a negative result serves as a permanent pass: no player whose test does not detect the gene will have to undergo it a second time.
In the event of a positive result, a supplementary medical evaluation is triggered before the WTA rules on eligibility. The organization has mandated Phuel Sports Science, a Colorado-based company, to administer the entire screening program.
Each player must also initial a document acknowledging that refusing the test exposes her to disciplinary sanctions, including possible suspension and, the text specifies, the prospect that "the reason for her ineligibility may become public or be subject to public speculation." The unusually direct wording leaves little room for ambiguity.
A page turned after half a century
The WTA has had an eligibility policy since 1975. Its previous version, revised in October 2024, allowed transgender women to compete under two conditions: a declared female or non-binary gender identity in writing, and a testosterone level maintained below 2.5 nmol/L during the twenty-four months preceding the first competition—and continuously thereafter. No surgical intervention or legal recognition was required. The text set itself the mission of "facilitating the participation of transgender players and players with differences in sex development, in a safe environment free from harassment."
This framework, however, was never activated: no transgender player is listed on the WTA circuit, and none has been for nearly half a century. The 2026 rewrite replaces this inclusive approach with a strict biological definition, while specifying that the distinction between sex and gender identity has "no intention of disrespecting or questioning anyone's gender identity or dignity."
In its statement, the WTA justifies the shift by the desire to "promote equal sporting opportunities in professional women's tennis and maintain fair competition." The organization mentions consultations with its members and cites "the evolution of standards in women's sport."
A global alignment
Tennis is following a broader dynamic. World Athletics has required a genetic test since September 2025 for athletes wishing to compete in the female category of world-ranking competitions. World Boxing adopted SRY gene screening in May 2025 for all its female competitors. Finally, the International Olympic Committee took the step in March 2026, conditioning participation in the 2028 Los Angeles Games on this same examination—a timeline that places the WTA in early compliance with the Olympic requirement.
The decision is not unanimous. Martina Navratilova, an eighteen-time Grand Slam winner and historic figure in women's tennis, welcomed the measure on social media, stating there was "nothing transphobic about a sex test" and that the rule "supports all women." On the other side, several voices denounce a regulatory escalation that responds to a nonexistent threat while exposing athletes to unprecedented medical intrusion in their sport.
The American political context weighs on the matter. Several states have legislated in recent years to restrict the participation of transgender athletes in women's competitions, a front largely driven by Republican lawmakers. The WTA, headquartered in St. Petersburg, Florida, operates in this polarized environment.
The concrete implementation of the screening—deployment schedule for already-ranked players, confidentiality protocol for genetic data, handling of disputed cases—remains to be specified. The WTA promises a "respectful and thoughtful" application. The coming weeks will indicate whether the circuit absorbs the reform without turbulence or whether cracks appear in a locker room that the gender question had, until now, never truly fractured.