Eighth Circuit swats challenge to Minnesota policy embracing trans athletes

(CN) — A women’s sports advocacy group failed to prove Minnesota intentionally discriminates against female athletes by allowing transgender students to compete in high school sports, the Eighth Circuit found on Wednesday.

While the court acknowledged the national debate over transgender participation in athletics remains an “open question of law,” it found the group lacked a private right of action under Title IX because it could not show the state acted with discriminatory intent.

In a 14-page order written on behalf of a three-judge panel, U.S. Circuit Judge Raymond Gruender said the group had standing to seek an injunction but failed to achieve the necessary components to be granted one.

“Because FAU’s allegations sound in disparate impact and do not allow for an inference of discriminatory intent or deliberate indifference, we conclude that its claims of ineffective accommodation and unequal treatment under Title IX are not claims of intentional discrimination,” the George W. Bush appointee wrote.

Representing several Minnesota high school softball players, Female Athletes United argues Minnesota’s inclusive sports policy ignores clear physiological differences between the sexes.

The group’s challenge refers back to 2016, when the Minnesota State High School League adopted a bylaw allowing participation for all students consistent with their gender identity or expression — a policy largely unchallenged for nearly a decade.

Specifically, the group claims high-school level softball players have faced one transgender athlete — identified anonymously in court documents as “Jane Doe” — who pitches shut-outs with unrivaled speed and ball movement.

The group claims Doe’s “biological advantages” deprive female athletes of equal opportunity through lost recruitment visibility and blown chances of winning championships.

The group asserts the state’s policy is not simply a neutral rule, but rather an intentional choice to disparage female athletes by allocating athletic opportunities based on gender identity. The court disagreed.

“FAU supplies no case law or other legal support for the proposition that appellees’ alleged awareness of and failure to prevent a single transgender girl’s participation in a team sport speak to an intent to discriminate,” Gruender wrote.

President Donald Trump’s 2025 executive orders on transgender athletes’ participation in women’s sports saw his administration take quick action, including an investigation into Minnesota high school sports over accusations of Title IX violations. Then-Attorney General Pam Bondi threatened the state with legal action.

The Minnesota State High School League announced in February 2025 it would not comply with Trump’s orders barring transgender athletes from competing in women’s sports.

Minnesota maintains its bylaws are a necessary application of Title IX. The league, and Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison, claim barring transgender people from participating in sports is in direct violation of the Minnesota Human Rights Act, which prohibits gender identity discrimination.

In September 2025, the U.S. Department of Education and Health and Human Services found Minnesota in violation of Title IX, and the administration sued the state over such policies last month.

Despite such actions from the Trump administration, Gruender noted these executive orders and agency findings do not reflect settled law by themselves — echoing concerns he showed during January’s oral argument.

“There can be no dispute that whether Title IX requires, permits or prohibits the participation of transgender athletes in female athletics remains an open question of law,” Gruender said in Wednesday’s ruling, rejecting the group’s attempts to use Trump administration guidance to back its claims.

“The executive branch’s views on that question may guide its own enforcement approach, but they cannot independently establish a ‘strong likelihood’ that Doe’s [the athlete] participation violated Title IX or its implementing regulations,” he added

Wednesday’s ruling comes amid newfound focus on the transgender sports debate in Minnesota in recent weeks, with the state most recently fighting in court Monday to keep its lawsuit against Trump’s executive orders alive.

Jim Campbell, chief legal counsel with the Alliance Defending Freedom, expressed disappointment with the ruling in an email to Courthouse News.

“Title IX was designed and passed to provide women with equal opportunities,” Campbell wrote. “Not allowing women to enforce those rights denies them equal opportunities, upends basic fairness, and even threatens safety. Men will always have physical advantages over women — that’s the reason we have girls’ sports. Regardless of today’s ruling, we will continue to advocate for women and girls because they deserve better. ”

The Minnesota Attorney General’s Office did not immediately respond to a request for comment Wednesday.

U.S. Circuit Judge L. Steven Grasz and U.S. Circuit Judge Ralph Erickson, both Donald Trump appointees, also sat on the panel.