Ahead of the 2019 Women’s World Cup kicking off on June 7, the prize money on offer has once again highlighted ongoing disparity between how much men and women footballers are earning.
The 2018 World Cup in Russia saw a total prize pool of AU$574 million (US$400m) on offer with eventual winners France taking home $54 million (US$38m).
In comparison, the 2019 Women’s World Cup in France has just $43 million (US$30m) up for grabs with the team that wins the trophy set to walk away with $5.7 million (US$4m) for their triumph.
All those facts mean regardless of how the Matildas perform at the tournament, they will earn a fraction of what the Socceroos did just 12 months prior.
Despite failing to win a game last year, the Socceroos left Russia with $12 million (US$8m) for their efforts which saw each green and gold player pocket $149,550 (US$104,000).
Even if the Matildas escape their group in France and match their 2015 effort by making it to the quarter-finals, the team will only earn $2 million (US$1.45m) which equates to $27,325 (US$19,000) for each player.
In light of this ongoing disparity on football’s biggest stage, Professional Footballers Australia (PFA) have launched the ‘Our Goal Is Now’ campaign which is seeking increased prize money for the Women’s World Cup.
Because only 24 teams compete at the Women’s World Cup compared to 32 at the men’s version, the campaign wants the overall prize pool on offer in France to be at least doubled with the ultimate goal of $482 million (US$336m) to ensure equality across the two tournaments.
Our journey is one of struggle.
Our sisters have given us strength.
But our fight goes on.#OurGoalisNow#WorldCupEqualityhttps://t.co/jDNMobAmDt pic.twitter.com/QbkX6X0Jge
— The PFA (@thepfa) June 3, 2019
PFA chief executive John Didulica has been campaigning FIFA for increased prize money over the past year and hasn’t ruled out taking legal action after the tournament to ensure players receive more adequate prize money for their efforts.
“It is the players themselves who are the victims of the discrimination,” Didulica said.
“The PFA expressly reserves the rights of the players to have this matter resolved through appropriate means including mediation and arbitration. There is no legal, economic or practical reason why this cannot occur after the tournament.”
Incidentally, the first female winner of the Ballon d’Or, Norway’s Ada Hegerberg, won’t be playing in France as she continues to push for better pay and conditions for female footballers in her home country.
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