"People saw talented Black woman and decided to attack with racism & transphobia"- Fans react as Barbra Banda targeted at Women’s League Cup final

Several netizens shared their reactions as Orlando Pride player Barbra Banda was targeted with racist and transphobic remarks by some of the fans outside the Pride Park Stadium. This came during the Women's League Cup finals, where Chelsea clinched a victory against Manchester City by a margin of 2-1.

Mayra Ramirez netted the ball for Chelsea in the 8th minute of the match, with City's Yui Haswgawa scoring an own goal in the 77th minute, leading to Chelsea's victory in this finals. However, another major highlight of the match was when a group of fans was spotted in front of the arena with placards seeking to ban Banda from the league.

This comes amid Banda's controversy related to the allegations she faced about failing gender eligibility tests that made her ineligible to play at the 2022 WAFCON. Several personalities, such as former WTA No.1 Martina Navratilova, have raised questions over Banda's participation in women's sports.

Reacting to the incident that took place outside the stadium, one of the fans expressed her distaste and remarked:

"absolutely disgusting to see “ban banda” transphobia racist signs outside the women’s league cup final. disgusting"

"people saw a talented black woman excelling in football and decided to attack her with racism and transphobia; absolutely disgusting. this isn’t about “fairness”, it’s pure bigotry banda has earned nothing but respect yet she’s met w hate and bigotry. absolutely unacceptable" another netizen commented.

"Report them to every security you can find. So damn gross" wrote another fan."

Here are a few other reactions:

"Aside from the actual argument, what are you going to ban her from in Derby? She plays her football in Orlando and Zambia" wrote a fan.

"oh my god I have no words, that's beyond vile what on earth???" questioned another netizen.

"Oh. i hope whichever’s team this racist & transphobic pos cheers for lose" commented another fan.

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Barbra Banda shared her thoughts after scoring two goals in Orlando Pride's first match of the 2025 season

Barbra Banda (left) during Orlando Pride's clash against Chicago Red Stars (Image via: Getty Images)

Barbra Banda opened up about her team's victory in the 2025 NWSL season opener against the Chicago Red Stars on March 14. Banda netted the ball twice in the 80th and 87th minute of the game to make it 6-0 for the Pride.

In an Instagram post following the match, Banda expressed her excitement about starting this new season with a victory and also lauded her performance during the match. She wrote:

"What a way to start our season A brace and an assist not bad, a small part to play for my team. Thanks sis @prisca.chilufya for that beautiful pass , Zambia Ku Chalo 💪"

Barbra Banda had an impressive outing last season, where she scored 13 goals and assisted six times in the regular NWSL season. Additionally, she also had 4 goals and 1 assist in the NWSL playoffs.