2023-06-22 17:27:24
Par Amelia Butterly et Rebecca ThornBBC 100 Women
an hour ago
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Thirty-two teams will take part in this year’s FIFA Women’s World Cup.
According to a new report, the world’s best female footballers are at risk due to a lack of pay, medical monitoring and adequate training facilities.
The players’ union, Fifpro, believes that the conditions are a “barrier to performance” in the six continental championships of the world.
All these championships, with the exception of the European one, serve as a qualification for the World Cup.
The BBC has asked Fifa, world football’s governing body, for comment.
Fifpro warns that inadequate playing and coaching conditions have a significant impact on the health and well-being of international footballers. A previous Fifpro study suggested that more than one in three footballers have depressive symptoms.
Earlier this year, Fifa announced equal terms – but not pay – for women’s and men’s World Cup tournaments, including better travel arrangements and private hotel rooms for each. player.
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Today, Fifpro demands that the conditions are also identical with regard to the access routes to the World Cup.
“The obligations and pressures have increased with the upward trajectory of professionalization, but the conditions and well-being of the players have remained the same or even decreased,” said Dr Alex Culvin, head of football research female on BBC’s 100 Women.
For her, it is essential that the right care is offered to more than half of the players who said they did not receive mental health support or were unaware of the existence of such support.
Medical care
According to Fifpro, nearly one in three players surveyed said they were not paid by their national team for these matches. More than half of them declared that they had not benefited from a medical examination before the tournament.
“It’s not an environment that allows players to perform at their best all the time,” said Sarah Gregorius, director of strategic relations for women’s football at Fifpro.
When it comes to pre-tournament medicals, the numbers are shocking and dangerous.
She wants all players to be able to benefit from a medical examination and that anything that is not the case is “totally unacceptable”.
Many countries have a long history of men’s professional football and experts believe this established infrastructure is part of why medical care for male players is more consistent than for women’s football.
“Due to the limited number of professional clubs [féminins] which offer professional standards, there is a greater need for players to undergo these examinations at an international level,” says Dr Culvin.
She cites the Confederation of African Football (Caf) as an example of what can be achieved – its female players have reported a much higher likelihood of receiving adequate health screenings compared to players competing in other confederation leagues.
“The Caf had made a real effort to pass a medical examination and an ECG [électrocardiogramme – pour vérifier le rythme cardiaque] to all players… So when confederations make it a priority, the data can change,” she said.
Almost all of the people who took part in the Fifpro study said that pay and bonuses needed to be improved.
Nearly a third of respondents said they had to take unpaid leave to participate in the qualifying phases.
“Players have to make a choice between their national team’s participation in international tournaments and keeping their second job and another source of income. A choice players shouldn’t have to make,” Fifpro said in a statement. his report.
‘The dream of the World Cup’
As part of Fifa’s recent commitment to minimum conditions for this year’s Women’s World Cup, which will take place in Australia and New Zealand, Fifa has pledged a share of the prize money for the players.
Each player in the team, which can have up to 23 players, will receive a sum of money depending on the results of their team in the competition, ranging from 30,000 dollars (17,882,583 CFA francs) for those who leave the group phase at 270,000 dollars (160,943,247 F CFA) for each player of the winning team.
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Qualifying for the Women’s World Cup has prompted Zambia to take an interest in women’s football, says Evarine Katongo.
This year will be the first time that a Zambian team – male or female – will take part in a FIFA World Cup competition. Evarine Katongo, midfielder for the qualifying team, believes that this has made everyone in the country interested in women’s football.
She believes the Fifa pledge is a step in the right direction for female footballers from difficult or low-income backgrounds.
“It will really have an impact, especially for African players,” she said. “It will really help them do good for their families and probably help make ends meet.
Although women’s football is becoming increasingly popular in Zambia, when it comes to chasing her own dreams, Evarine believes success lies abroad, where there is more money and opportunities. .
“My dream for the World Cup is to be scouted by another team,” she said.
“I don’t see myself playing once more in the local league in Zambia following the World Cup.
The Fifpro survey in detail
A total of 362 players from the six confederations responded to the survey. Five of the six confederations used the continental championships to decide which countries would qualify – only Uefa held a separate competition. During qualifying, the terms on which players are exposed and in which they are expected to perform at their best, during some of the greatest competitive moments of their lives, are not up to the standards of elite international football, which which endangers both the players and the sport,” Fifpro executives said in the report’s opening statement.
‘Many sacrifices’
Colombian international Leicy Santos, who joined Spain to play professionally at Atlético de Madrid in 2019, is one of the players who managed to establish herself at a bigger club.
At the beginning of her career, she had to face huge financial difficulties to pursue her dream.
“I come from a very modest family,” she says of her childhood in rural Colombia.
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Leicy Santos will participate in his second World Cup this year, following defending the colors of Colombia in 2015.
“Until I joined the Colombian national team in 2012, I had no financial support. Then I started earning a bit of money every time I went to training, they [l’équipe nationale] paid for my travel expenses,” she explains.
“At that point, I stopped asking my parents for money and preferred to help them as much as I might, but what they [l’équipe nationale] paid me wasn’t much either.”
Despite being part of the national team, it was still not possible for her to live solely from football, and Leicy says she has been cleaning up with her mother to contribute to the family income.
“The reality is that you don’t have constant support that allows you to make a living from football and just focus on the sport,” she explains.
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Leicy (far left) joined Colombia’s youth team in 2012.
In 2019, Atlético de Madrid signed Leicy and that’s when she noticed a huge change in her professional experience.
“I’m at a club that gives me everything – training facilities, medical services, salary,” she says.
“I know that I am privileged; there are clubs which, even in the same league as me in Spain, do not offer any of this and [les joueuses] live very badly.
Organizers are hoping a record two billion people will watch the Women’s World Cup this year, nearly double the 1.12 billion viewers who will watch the 2019 tournament in France.
“I think it’s an amazing way to break down stereotypes that have persisted,” says Jennifer Cooper, head of sport at UN Women.
“It shows that women are capable. It provides role models and dreams for girls and…it normalizes the fact that men and women play football.”
The BBC contacted Fifa, the six confederations and the national teams of Colombia and Zambia to make a statement, but none was provided.
Additional reporting by Agustina Latourrette and Celestine Karoney.
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