A new rule in women’s basketball causes concern among the players: “It is totally discriminatory”

The players who participate in the Metropolitan Basketball League are on alert for a new regulation that establishes that, starting this year, first division teams may not have more than two members over 35 years of age.

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The Basketball Federation of Buenos Aires Metropolitan Area (Febamba) issued a document on December 29, 2022 in which it establishes that the teams that participate in the “Superior” category (or first division) must be made up of players “born between 1988 and 2004 + 2 (two) players aged 35+ old”.

“The news took us by surprise. It makes us tremendously sad, ”she told TN Jésica Fuente, who is 41 years old and is a Banco Provincia player. On how this measure would affect the current members of the teams, she specified: “Being over 35, they would take you out of the sport you have been doing since you were a child, the one you have always played. Many will not be able to play or they will have to wait to see if the coach chooses them to be one of the two enabled. If you’re not, they’re removing you from basketball”.

Jésica specified that in men’s basketball there is no regulation of this type and he recalled that players like Paolo Quinteros, Pepe Sánchez or Manu Ginóbili himself were active until after the age of 40, without any type of limitation. He even went further with his question: “What would happen to Messi if they did something like that in football?”

The truth is that, currently, most first division teams are made up of players over 35 years of age. “This regulation is going to make it so that many clubs cannot present themselves or disappear directly,” warned Roberta Lamy, who at 40 is also part of Banco Provincia, a team made up mostly of women over 35 who should fight for Those only two spaces.

It is because he sentenced: “They harm us, it is a totally discriminatory measure.”

The promotion of Maxi Basketball, one of the possible reasons for the new regulations

According to the opinion of the protagonists, one of the reasons for the elaboration of this new rule could be the intention of the authorities of promote Maxi Basketball or Veterans Basketball. These categories, which include teams of +35, +40 and +45 years, already have a wide development in the masculine branch, but not yet in the feminine.

“Unlike the men’s, women’s basketball is not that big. There aren’t that many girls who play basketball. The girls are going to soccer, which is more fashionable, “explained Roberta.

The players explained that they are not against the promotion of Maxi Basketball, however the new regulations leave a gray area: those players who are “cut” from their current teams due to their age, do not have female categories +35, +40 or +45 to go to play since they have not yet been developed. “It is not something concrete yet,” they said.

“It is perfect that there is Maxi Basketball and that those who want to go play there. But also that those who want to play in the first or in the national league can do so. In this last category today there are many players over 35 who are mothers, have children”, commented Roberta.

And he compared:In the masculine it is free, those over 35 can play in first without limits. The idea is that they don’t prevent you from playing because of your age, it’s crazy”.

In addition, he denounced that the authorities often use women’s basketball as a “guinea pig” to test their new regulations. This would be just another case.

“The question if they open the Maxi Basketball categories is where we are going to train. At first they hardly give him space, I don’t even want to think what would happen with a team of +35 or +45. We would train at 2 in the morning because they give us the worst times and places. They discriminate against us all the time, it’s everyday, ”he lamented.

The players’ response

Before the publication of this official statement, the players began to organize to ask Febamba to reverse the measure.

“We have to go out and fight to be able to play”said Lamy, who anticipated that they are already preparing a letter to present to the authorities.