Sydney Opera House is lit in celebration of Australia and New Zealands joint bid to host the FIFA … [+]
Leading players and administrators in the women’s game have continued to urge major European broadcasters to pay what they consider to be a fair price to show the FIFA Women’s World Cup which begins in 50 days in Australia and New Zealand.
With the tournament kicking-off on July 20 at the 81,500-capacity Stadium Australia, there remains no signed deal to broadcast the tournament within the five biggest European television markets of France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the United Kingdom.
According to reports, offers from France to show the Women’s World Cup amount to less than 5% of the €130 million ($139 million) they paid to broadcast the men’s World Cup in Qatar last year. In Italy, quarter-finalists at the last Women’s World Cup, the offer on the table is €1 million ($1.07 million), less than 1% of the €160 million ($171.5 million) paid to show the men’s World Cup, which their own national side did not even qualify for.
Research by German newspaper Kicker claim their national broadcasters have offered €3 million ($3.2 million) to show the tournament, less than 3% of the amount paid to televise the last two men’s World Cups. They also suggest that TV companies in the United Kingdom have submitted an offer of €8 million ($8.6 million), closer to the €10 million ($10.7 million) demanded by the world governing body, FIFA.
During his acceptance speech upon his re-election as FIFA President in March, Gianni Infantino made a pledge to triple the prize fund for the Women’s World Cup this summer from the previous tournament in 2019 to $152 million. He also professed FIFA’s ambition to eventually equalize prize money between the women’s and men’s World Cup ($440 million) but claimed “broadcasters and sponsors have to do more. . . How can we do it, otherwise?”
An outspoken critic of FIFA’s human rights policy, the President of the Norwegian FA, Lise Klaveness nevertheless told me that she agreed with Infantino on these points. “They should have done more before, but that part of Gianni’s address at the FIFA Congress was a good one. It was direct. To talk about equal pay, I’ve never heard it before from the FIFA leadership.”
Carla Overbeck, a member of the first team to win the Women’s World Cup in 1991 and captain of the legendary ’99ers’ team eight years later, explained to me why it was necessary for broadcasters to pay more to show women’s matches and how that money will be used.
PASADENA, : Carla Overbeck (C) holds up the World Cup trophy along with the rest of the US team … [+]
“Everyone’s goal is to grow women’s football globally. That’s what we all want to do. We’re working towards a fairer value from broadcasters. We as players, and I think everyone involved, just wants to push the women’s game forward and just have more growth throughout the world.”
Speaking to L’Équipe last week, Lyon defender Vanessa Gilles urged European TV companies to step up and offer more money to show the tournament. “The broadcasters must make more efforts. FIFA is trying to sell the Women’s World Cup at fair value. Selling it for anything less would be a disservice to women’s football.”
At the start of May, Infantino reiterated that offers from the ‘big five’ European countries remained “very disappointing and simply not acceptable” in a speech made at the World Trade Organization headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland.
“To be very clear, it is our moral and legal obligation not to undersell the FIFA Women’s World Cup. Therefore, should the offers continue not to be fair, we will be forced not to broadcast the FIFA Women’s World Cup into the ‘Big 5’ European countries. I call, therefore, on all players, fans, football officials, Presidents, Prime Ministers, politicians and journalists all over the world to join us and support this call for a fair remuneration of women’s football. Women deserve it! As simple as that!”
Sam Kerr (right) with her FWA women’s player of the year trophy alongside Sarai Bareman, chief … [+]
Speaking last week at the Football Writers’ Association Awards dinner in London last Thursday, the Chief Women’s Football Officer for FIFA, Sarai Bareman thanked the English media for their continued coverage of the women’s game. However, as she presented the Women’s Footballer of the Year Award to Australian Sam Kerr, she reminded them not to take coverage of the World Cup for granted.
“There’s one little thing you can also help me out with. There’s a few little agreements that need to be signed. We’re almost there so please keep asking the questions. I’m sure we’ll get there but if you can help me out on that as well? Every dollar we make goes back into making more Sam Kerrs!”
