Much progress has been made toward gender equity in athletics since Title IX was first passed in 1972, but girls and women and LGBTQI+ people still face sex discrimination when playing school sports. For example, high school girls receive more than one million fewer opportunities than boys to play sports, and college women receive 60,000 fewer opportunities than men. And when girls and women do have a chance to play sports, they often receive worse facilities, uniforms, and equipment; inexperienced coaches; and less support and publicity from their schools—all of which send the message that they are “less than” their male peers. Furthermore, many LGBTQI+ students—especially transgender and intersex students—are facing an unprecedented wave of attacks, including bans on their participation in school sports.

Read these fact sheets to learn more about the various challenges students face in pursuing gender equity in athletics, and what we need to do to fulfil Title IX’s promise.