The FA shut trans women out, so Josie Gray and Joanna Holmgren created a league to welcome them in.

When new FA rules announced in May 2025 effectively barred trans women from playing in women’s teams, it sent ripples throughout the grassroots scene. For trans women wanting to participate in the sport at a community level, it was no longer clear where they’d be welcome. And for players and coaches who have championed inclusivity in the game, it created questions about how they could keep playing without compromising their values.

For Josie Gray and Joanna Holmgren, two London-based coaches and players, there was a solution. Since exclusion was never part of football’s DNA, they would create their own league — one where women, LGBTQ+ and non-binary footballers could continue playing together. The founders had years of experience in the grassroots scene to draw on; Josie is a lifelong player-turned-coach at Bend it like Peckham, while Joanna is a player armed with an MSc in Psychology, with a focus on sport.

And so, League of Our Own was born. The inclusive league isn’t affiliated with the FA, and its first matches took place in September following a big bash launch party and fundraiser organised with the help of Louise Kennedy, an events professional by trade who joined League of Our Own to push back against exclusion in the support she’s loved since her first visit to Old Trafford, aged 12. The debut league features six teams from across South London teams playing across 10 weeks.

We sat down with the founders to hear how things have been going, how you actually go about setting up a fledgling league — and what’s next for it.

TwentyTwo: Let’s start at the beginning. How did the idea for this come about?
League of Our Own: When the FA announced the ban, we found it very difficult to play in leagues and set ups that didn’t reflect our values and excluded people we had previously been able to play with. After discussions with local leagues, it became clear things weren’t going to change. So we decided to create our own, non-FA affiliated space to provide our friends, team mates and the wider football community with a space to play football, regardless of their background or identity.

How did you go about actually launching the league? What went into it?
We started planning in the middle of June to gauge interest and scope everything out. By the end of June, we had six teams ready and waiting with our first league, and it was all go from there. We booked and secured our pitch by the beginning of July. Then it was all hands on deck to get everything ready.

We scoped out the whole thing in theory and within eight weeks we had teams, footballs, pitches and a plan. We also held a fundraiser launch party, predominantly organised by Louise, which helped us to raise funds for future leagues and celebrate the support we’d had so far.

We’ve worked really hard on making the league a sustainable project going forwards too, and not just a one-hit wonder. We’ve had great support from businesses through sponsorship and this has made future planning a tangible thing for us — so a huge thank you to Shiny Brewing, (our main league sponsor), TwentyTwo (our Player of the Match sponsor) and the Sportess for donating funds towards our equipment. I’d also like to thank Football v Homophobia who were kind enough to provide discounted footballs and t-shirts for our team goodie bags.

What’s the big vision?
Our vision was to create a community-minded football league that reflected values of inclusivity, compassion and support. How exactly we were going to achieve that, we didn’t really know at the beginning.

It was a huge learning curve for us but the support we’ve had has been incredible, and really made it what it is. We started with the plan to run a trial league to gauge interest, create some momentum and make all the mistakes on a small scale. But it’s absolutely taken off, and fair to say interest and support has been far beyond what we expected. Teams and individual players have been in contact from all over South London and we now have a waiting list of 30 teams who are interested in future leagues. We’ve also had really positive interest and support from local businesses (and some in other parts of the UK), who have really got behind our goal, which has been amazing. This is definitely just the beginning.

You’re partway through your first season. How’s it going, what’s the vibe like?
It’s been amazing, honestly. Better than we ever hoped. The teams are amazing, they’re all so keen to play, supportive of what we’ve built and the vibes are perfect. Everyone plays with passion and really wants to be their best, but also have so much respect for one another. The feedback we’ve had has been overwhelmingly positive and we are just really glad to be able to create a small pocket of joy in a world that feels quite scary for lots of people at the moment. To see happy faces and teams having a good time is a really great feeling.

What have been some of the pinch-me moments so far?
The launch party, without a doubt. Until that point, everything had been an idea, a concept. We genuinely had no idea if anyone was going to turn up. But standing in a room full of amazing people who were all there to support our league and our cause was truly amazing.

The other moment was the start of our first league. To know all our hard work had come to that moment felt great, and to see everyone enjoying themselves was a special moment.

Biggest challenges?
Pitch space and cost. Pitch space in London is like gold dust, and even if you can get a space, paying for it isn’t easy. It’s expensive. That’s why our sponsorships and partnerships have been crucial to what we’re doing. We’ve made some amazing connections through our first league and we’re now working with Lambeth Links and Lambeth council to explore more long-term pitch spaces. Ultimately, we’re competing with a lot of other football teams, groups and leagues, so we’ll have to work hard to secure [pitches].

What keeps you going when things feel like a slog?
I won’t lie, it’s been really hard work at points, especially at the beginning when pitches were a struggle and trying to balance everything alongside full-time work. But the feedback, support and love we’ve had in messages, comments, etc, has been a real boost. The other huge boost is seeing everyone on a Sunday so happy to play, enjoying themselves and making new friends. It’s really great to see.

What makes League of Our Own so special?
We wanted to create a space that made people feel safe, welcome and heard, which I think we’ve done, but what has really made it special is the people. Joanna for being so on board with the plan and working so hard. Louise for getting behind our goal and throwing everything into an incredible launch party that reflected who we are and where we wanted to go and all the players, teams and people that have been involved. Everyone involved has been so welcoming, warm and on-board. We’ve built this league on community, compassion and inclusion and that will always be our priority. That is what makes us truly unique.

What’s your advice to someone thinking of starting an inclusive league?
There are lots of football leagues out there and they can be hard to maintain and keep going. Be clear on what you want to achieve, build a team of people (because it’s a lot of work, especially at the beginning), and don’t forget how much of an impact it can have. Plan, plan, plan, and then give it a go! You’ll be surprised how many amazing people are out there wanting to support.

What's next for League of Our Own?
Lots. We’re currently in the process of securing pitches for our next leagues, and we hope to run multiple leagues concurrently from next year. Our long-term aim is to run leagues from beginner to advanced level, 5-9 a side. But it’s all in stages. Our next phase of work is pitches and making the leagues sustainable financially. Then we want to expand our team — we need people who are as passionate as we are to run the leagues and build the league further.

Get involved: Follow @leagueofourown2025 on Instagram, email leagueofourown2025@outlook.com, or sign up to their newsletter for information on upcoming leagues and opportunities to get involved with the team.

How League of Our Own is making football fair again

“We wanted to create a space that made people feel safe, welcome and heard”

“We’ve built this league on community, compassion and inclusion, and that will always be our priority.”

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