AUS: Trans-Identified Male Playing in Women’s Football Matches Awarded Top Goal Scorer Honor

A trans-identified male football player who has been competing in the women’s category was the recipient of a prestigious top goal scorer award, prompting criticism from a professional female athlete. Maximillia Kostur, who has been playing in the National Premier League, the highest level of women’s soccer in Victoria, was recently handed a Nike FC Cup honor.

The Nike FC Cup is a major women’s football knockout competition in Victoria, Australia. It’s run by Football Victoria and sponsored by Nike. The cup features a Golden Boot / top goal-scorer award, and this year the award was handed to Kostur, a male player for FC Clifton Hill who “identifies” as a woman.

In response to the news, former American professional footballer Addison Steiner came forward in opposition to the inclusion of male athletes in women’s competitions. Speaking to The Daily Mail, Steiner addressed the situation without naming Kostur, presumably to protect herself from a lawsuit.

However, a search for the recipient of the award reveals that FC Clifton Hill celebrated the win on social media and named Kostur, noting that he scored 11 goals in women’s matches during the 2026 season and thereby “contributed to our best Cup run ever.”

Steiner had played against Kostur during a match in Melbourne. “This player was undeniably faster, stronger and more technical, out running some of the quickest players in the league,” she said. “I found myself thinking, damn this player is an absolute beast and shocked by their abilities, unaware she was a transgender woman until the game was finished.”

“It’s about protecting women’s sports where we have fought so hard for decades to be respected, seen, heard and given equal opportunities and resources,” Steiner continued. “We are forced to succumb to these decisions made by the soccer federations here without any choice.”

Another female player spoke to The Daily Mail anonymously, noting that “many players admitted being too scared to go in for tackles against [him].”

The anonymous player contacted Football Victoria to express her views on the unfairness of Kostur’s participation due to his physical advantages. She was told the organization’s “foremost priority” was inclusion.

Dan Birrell, Football Victoria’s chief executive, told The Herald Sun the organization’s current policy does not require athletes to disclose their sex in order to play in the women’s category.

“There is no current requirement for born/biological sex disclosure from any player/person behind their identified gender,” he stated. Birrell also claimed that there was no evidence that male athletes benefit from greater strength, or that they pose a risk of injury to female players.

Football Victoria’s official website published a statement in support of the “LGBTQIA+ Community” at the beginning of 2025 – around the same time Kostur began playing on the Alamein United FC team. “We believe being inclusive is reflecting the diversity of our local communities and that everyone should have the opportunity to be included and engaged through football in a way that is positive and meaningful, regardless of sex, sexuality, gender identity or any other defining characteristic,” reads the statement. “Football Victoria has zero tolerance for homophobia, biphobia, and transphobia in our game, and is committed to fostering safe, welcoming and inclusive environments for all participants.”

The organization’s policy aligns with Australian football’s wider approach. Earlier this year, a female player came forward to reveal she had been retaliated against for refusing to play against against a team with five trans-identified male players. The Flying Bats have consistently dominated women’s matches in Australia’s Premier League of the North West Sydney Football Association (NWSFA), and have reportedly injured multiple women on the field.

In 2024, the team won the pre-season Beryl Ackroyd Cup, netting a $1,000 prize. With the news that the men had joined, racking up victory after victory, 24 women dropped out of playing in the league in protest. The decision was influenced by reports that the men had repeatedly injured some of the female players to the point of no longer being able to play football. Later that year, the Flying Bats also won the NWSFA Premier League tournament, having gone the season completely undefeated. They hadn’t lost a single game among the 17 they had played, although six of those were because the opposition had forfeited the match in silent protest.

While the Flying Bats accrued victories, reports emerged of multiple female players sustaining injuries on the field after run-ins with the male players. One as-yet-unnamed male player for the Flying Bats is said to have broken a female player’s leg in two places.

Reduxx spoke with Frank Parisi, president of St. Patrick’s Football Club, who confirmed that after “a clumsy tackle from behind,” a woman playing for his team “had her leg broken in two places, and she’s no longer playing football.”

“One of our players rushed over to try to help her, she was screaming in so much pain. At that time, she made a derogatory remark to the Bats player, which we apologized for. [She was] suspended. The Bats player, nothing happened to [him].” Parisi clarified that following this incident, the player was suspended from matches for a total of eight weeks.

Despite this, women in one of the top football leagues in Sydney were recently banned from forfeiting matches against the Flying Bats. The women of the Northern Suburbs Football Association were reportedly forced to sign an agreement that explicitly barred them from forfeiting matches against the team with five male players.

In addition to social retaliation, female athletes and coaches have been threatened with egregious fines should they attempt to voice opposition to policies allowing men to play football against women.

Heads of Football New South Wales (FNSW) and North West Sydney Football (NWSF), John Tsatsimas and Matthew Geracitano, convened a meeting in spring of 2024 and required the attendance of all football club presidents under their jurisdiction. During the March 20 meeting attendees were told that a decision to boycott participation by forfeiting matches against The Flying Bats would result in “disciplinary action” being issued.

Additionally, Geracitano sent an email to all club presidents citing policies put forward by eSafety Commissioner Julie Inman Grant in the Online Safety Act 2021. The email states that possible violations of the legislation include “publishing private or identifying information about an individual with malicious intent to cause serious harm,” and cautions that “individuals responsible for posting seriously harmful material” can be fined up to $111,000.

Currently, one woman who raised safety concerns about male players in women’s football leagues is appealing a “vilification” conviction for referring to the athletes as men. Kirralie Smith was ordered to pay a staggering $95,000 AUD to the two trans-identified men who brought a discrimination complaint against her after she sounded the alarm using publicly available information.

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