There is "no question that women's football is still behind the men's game, but it is fast catching up," according to Alistair Tweedale of the London TELEGRAPH. Huge developments have been made and "while some Premier League players earn stratospheric and frankly obscene money, there are female footballers who are closing the pay gap." Those, however, "remain foreign footballers, hailing from countries where the women's game is far more popular and gains greater coverage." The best-paid female English players earn around £35,000 ($55,000)-a-year from their clubs. Central contracts handed to England players since '09 are boosting earnings by up to £26,000 ($40,800). Those, however, "are only handed to the cream of the crop." For the vast majority of players in England, sponsorship deals are "few and far between," and meager club salaries are "not sufficient on their own."
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| Source: London TELEGRAPH |
Some will make as little as £50 ($79) per week. This is "despite the fact" that the yearly budget for England's women's team of £10.8M ($17M) is "higher than any other European country."
Greater funding for club football, "or significant development of fan interest, is needed for the women's game to develop further in England" (
TELEGRAPH, 6/23).
NO PAY DAY: In Sydney, Larissa Nicholson reported if Australia loses its World Cup quarterfinal, it will leave Canada with just A$2,850 ($2,200) in its "pay packets." If the Socceroos lost the Asian Cup at the same stage, "they would have been paid" more than A$66,600 ($51,500). Football Federation Australia released a statement "defending its commitment to the women's game, after the team impressed with a 1-0 win over Brazil." An FFA spokesperson said that it had made "significant investments in preparation for the cup, a clear indication" of its intention to help women's football grow. The way payments are made to members of the men's national team, the Socceroos, and Matildas players are "structurally different and therefore difficult to compare -- but it is clear which team makes more money." The base payment the Matildas get from FFA for an int'l match is A$500 ($387), plus a A$150 ($116) a night living allowance. FFA pays the Socceroos a A$6,000 ($4,640) base payment for every int'l game. The FFA spokesperson said that playing in the World Cup would "open doors to some of the big competitions around the world for Matildas players, where they could earn good money supplementing their income from Australia's W-League." The spokesperson added, "FFA is working hard to overcome the challenges in securing commercial partners for women's football on top of the commitment from Westfield who support both the W-League and Matildas" (SYDNEY MORNING HERALD, 6/23).
