The world football union Fifpro has published a devastating report on the conditions of the internationals who took part in the qualifying phase for the World Cup in Australia and New Zealand, which takes place from July 20 to August 20. Their conclusions reveal alarming data such as the fact that only 40% of female footballers who played in these tournaments are considered professionals. A worrying number if we consider that this is a tournament that gives access to compete in a World Cup and which, therefore, brings together the best athletes from each country.
16% identify themselves as semi-professionals, another 35% as amateurs and 9% said they were not sure about their status. As a result of non-professionalisation, a large majority of female athletes have to combine their sports career with a second job to survive. According to the survey data, 66% of female soccer players had to request a permit in their second job to be able to participate in the qualifying tournaments that took place over the course of last year in the different confederations.
The low financial remuneration they perceive for competing with the national team makes it impossible for them to dedicate themselves exclusively to football. For 93% of the athletes, the federations should increase the amounts that the players receive. And in fact, a shameful 29% claim that they have not received any salary from the national team. Most federations pay their internationals to participate in concentrations or tournaments, with bonuses for the results obtained.
The Fifpro report also refers to other issues that concern female footballers, such as physical and mental health, the accumulation of matches, the quality of infrastructure or travel conditions. More than half of the respondents (54%) acknowledge that they have not undergone any medical check-up prior to the tournament and up to 70% acknowledge that they have not had an electrocardiogram either.
The players are also worried that the competition calendar is getting longer and longer and they are worried about the little rest time they have between the matches with the clubs and the activity with the national team. It is, in many cases, just one day. According to the medical research carried out by Fifpro, there must be a minimum of 72 hours between matches, and this without counting the impact of travel fatigue. “The level is becoming more and more intense. More is demanded of the players. But I am not convinced that the resources offered to female players are currently good enough to provide the proper recovery they need,” reports an anonymous UEFA player.
Fifpro also collects the concerns of footballers regarding infrastructure. They report that training grounds, stadiums, gymnasiums and other facilities are not up to the standard of the elite and warn that there are substantial differences between confederations, which causes inequalities when competing. The conditions in which they travel must also be improved, since only 13% of sportswomen admit that they travel in priority, most travel by plane in tourist class, despite the negative effects on their sports performance.
