Closing the Gender Gap: Equal Pay for Female Footballers Demands FIFA's Urgent Attention

Ger Inequality in Sports: Women’s Footballers Are Still Second-Class Citizens

By Jenny Peng

During a match between the champions of 2011 Japan and Netherlands, two police officers alongside some officials approached a group of enthusiastic fans who were enthusiastically beating their drums. The fans had been cheering loudly since the start of the game, waving flags, and shouting in Japanese chants throughout.

When they seized the drum from these spirited supporters, they also took away what professional women's sports and football need most: passionate fans who can help build the market appeal that leads to sponsorships and increased media coverage. If audiences grow enough by buying tickets regularly or tuning into games on television, it might allow female players in top-level competitions like the World Cup to focus solely on their sport.

U.S national team star Abby Wambach is among the world's best, with an annual salary of $190,000. This figure barely exceeds what the second-highest pd male footballer, Lionel Messi, earns per day. Despite this, she stands as one of the lucky few who can live off their athletic careers.

Photo Credit: Wambach first half @Flickr CC BY SA 2.0

The lack of female rolein professional sports is puzzling when women's league salaries vary from $6,000 to $30,000 worldwide if a league exists, deping on the country and league.

As I watched athletes race up and down the field, I couldn't help but feel disheartened at how female football players are often seen as second-class citizens. The tide is slowly changing with improvements in TV viewership, corporate interest, and revenue compared to the 2011 Women's World Cup. However, there remn instances of FIFA’s indifference towards supporting women's football.

In December 2014 at a press conference, FIFA Secretary General Jerome Valcke dismissed questions about ger pay disparity:

The comparison between the prize money offered for men's and women's World Cups doesn't even deserve an answer. We hosted our third World Cup in Brazil in 2014, which was the seventh edition of the women's World Cup... things should grow step-by-step, reported Reuters.

But we're still about another twenty-three World Cups away from women receiving equal pay.

Valcke’s attitude reflects FIFA’s reluctance to invest more in women's football, even though the organization has elected its first female executive member only two years ago. Despite this progress, it continues to ignore issues affecting female players and audiences alike.

FIFA needs to step up its game when it comes to empowering female athletes. The organization should be fostering growth rather than being complacent about progress.

To start with, FIFA could increase the payout for this year’s World Cup teams by $15 million dollars. With profits of $2.6 billion from the 2014 World Cup and a total revenue of $5.7 billion between 2011 to 2014, FIFA will be distributing an award of $2 million to winning teams, which is a 50 percent increase from the $1 million reward offered in 2011. This figure still falls short compared to Germany's prize pool of $35 million at the World Cup in Brazil last year.

The fact that FIFA is considering only offering a 50 percent rse on the prize money suggests that it might not explicitly recognize contributions from female World Cup revenue. In other words, athletes could be receiving less compensation than their male counterparts without realizing it.

This lack of support for female football players by FIFA ss a disheartening message to fans and athletes alike: it signifies that FIFA doesn't value or prioritize the development of its women's team over men’s.

As an audience member who consumes football, I can't help but feel frustrated with this inequality. Female athletes have proven their worth on the pitch time and agn, yet they're not being treated frly in comparison to their male counterparts.

The sports industry needs to catch up and treat all athletes equally. Ger pay gap issues need to be addressed at every level of sports organizations worldwide, from FIFA down to local club teams and leagues, if we want to see a truly equal playing field for everyone.

It's time to empower girls and women through physical education and sport, starting with fr compensation and recognition.

Sources:

• The10HighestPdWomenSoccerStars

• Sponsorscatchontoboomingwomenssport

• EmpoweringGirlsandWomansthroughPhysicalEducationandsport

• TheWomensWorldCupNeedsYouToWatch

• Sponsorship

Edited by Olivia Yang
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