Five months after the World Cup, which will start on July 20 in Australia and New Zealand, world women’s soccer has taken hold, and no wonder. In recent weeks, several players have raised their voices against their federations due to the lack of resources allocated to the women’s sections. The Canadian team, Wendie Renard, Christiane Endler… The players say enough is enough.
The first to fall as a result of this storm has been Nick Bontis, president of the Canadian Federation, who resigned yesterday after the players of the national team began a strike on February 11 due to budget cuts by the Canadian Association soccer.
“While I have been one of the biggest advocates of equalizing the competitive performance environment of our women’s team, unfortunately, I will not be leading this organization when this happens. I recognize that this moment demands change,” Bontis announced.
However, just 24 hours after Christine Sinclair and Janine Beckie announced the strike, the players were forced to resume their activity and prepare for the She Believes Cup, as Canada Soccer had deemed the strike illegal, and threatened to give other steps that could cost millions of dollars.
The captain of the team, Christine Sinclair, announced it through her social networks: “To be clear. We are being forced to return to work in the short term, but this is not over. We will continue to fight for everything we deserve. And we will win. The SheBelieves Cup will be played in protest.”
Women players, who have been supported by their Canadian male counterparts, have seen the time spent at rallies cut, as well as the number of players and staff participating in them.
Women’s soccer echoed this situation, and the first to react were the players of the US team, known for raising their voices and fighting against injustices. In the She Believes Cup match between the two teams on February 16, the Americans displayed a lilac wristband —a gesture that was repeated in other matches in the competition— and embraced their rivals in the central circle as a sign of unity and protest.
The Canadian soccer players for their part, took the field with a purple shirt where you could read ‘Enough is Enough’ (Enough is enough).
But far from being an isolated event and remembering the war that is still going on in the Spanish women’s team, Wendie Renard, captain of the French team, threatened not to play in the World Cup if the situation was not reversed, alluding to the current coach, Corinne Deacon and his coaching staff.
“I can no longer support the current system, which is far from the requirements to perform at the highest level. It is with a heavy heart that I am writing this message to inform you of my decision to step back with the France team.” This is how forceful the Olympique de Lyon player was through a statement published on her social networks where she also highlighted the need to “preserve” her mental health.
Katoto and Diani, her teammates, also supported her words. “We join the decision to make a hiatus in our international races until the necessary changes are applied,” they declared.
Along the same lines, Christiane Endler, goalkeeper of the Chilean team, charged against her federation after the elimination in the World Cup playoffs against Haiti. “We are stuck at a level where it is not reached. If changes are not made, we will continue in the same way and the gap will be too big…”, warned the goalkeeper.
Endler, who for a year had been denouncing the lack of resources allocated to the women’s section, stated that his continuity would be reconsidered depending on what happened with the selection. “We did what we could, what was asked of us with the resources we had. We left everything on the field, but we had no more resources. It was said a long time ago and we were not listened to. We have been asking for a change in management for a long time , but the Chilean soccer authorities have decided to continue with a process that does not work,” he said.
The players of the Peru team have also taken advantage of the pull, and have raised their voices to protest the situation they have been experiencing for a few months. They have no coach, no training sessions, no games scheduled for the next few dates, and their captain, Alexandra Kimball, has launched a call for help through her social networks. “Day by day our rivals work to strengthen and build the union of their changing rooms. It is sad to see how far Peru is from those teams. I expected more from our federation for this 2023,” she denounced.
The winds of change are blowing in world women’s football. Some female players, fed up with the lack of resources and the differences with their male counterparts, have decided to stand up and raise their voices in favor of their rights, at the risk of harming their professional careers. Willing to give up the World Cup —the last for many of them—, players from all over the world have come together with the same goal: to achieve equality of resources and opportunities.
