The International Federation of Professional Footballers, otherwise known as FIFPRO, has released a post-Women’s World Cup report following a survey conducted with players from 26 of the 32 teams that were at the global women’s football showpiece that was played in Australia and New Zealand between 20 July and 20 August 2023.
Although the 260 participants of the survey were not mentioned, the findings are however very disturbing – with three key areas highlighted:
- Match Calendar
- Medical Support
- Compensation
“The players gave everything they had to put on a brilliant World Cup, but there are still important gaps that need addressing. We will be seeking to work through these issues with stakeholders and resolve them as soon as possible,” said Sarah Gregorius, FIFPRO Director of Policy and Strategic Relations for Women’s Football.
Match Calendar:
The survey states that 53 percent of the players felt they did not have adequate rest before their first World Cup fixture as they were still dealing with their domestic leagues, and immediately went to the World Cup afterwards.
This led to two-thirds being of the opinion that they were not at their physical peak by the start of competition.
Furthermore, 60 percent of the players were back at their clubs within two weeks of competition, and felt were not given enough time to recover.
According to the report, FIFPRO guidelines recommend an off-season break of four weeks, with a re-training period of six weeks.
Compensation:
Another thorny issue, which affected some national teams before the tournament, was the remuneration.
The survey findings showed that one in three players earn less than $30,000 (R554,961,00) a year from football, and one in five supplements their income with a second job.
The figures mentioned by players in the survey also include when they are on national team duty, but excludes the funds from FIFA for every participating player at the tournament.
Medical support:
What was most disturbing, however, was that 10 percent of players did not have a pre-tournament medical examination, while 22 percent never went through an electrocardiogram (ECG).
An ECG is used to see how the heart is functioning. It mainly records how often the heart beats (heart rate) and how regularly it beats (heart rhythm). It can give important information, for instance about possible narrowing of the coronary arteries, a heart attack, or an irregular heartbeat.
Perhaps shockingly, both the above tests are part of FIFA tournament regulations.
Also, with mental health well-being, or lack thereof, becoming common with players, a whopping 60 percent said they lacked support concerning that subject.
“Anything below 100 percent when it comes to access to an ECG or undertaking a pre-tournament medical is not acceptable. All players need to complete these important checks before they compete, and the regulations need to be applied and adhered to in full. Players need an environment that supports their holistic wellbeing – from mental health through to tournament conditions, so they have the platform to be at their competitive best,” said Dr Alex Culvin: FIFPRO Head of Strategy & Research for Women’s Football.
For more on the survey, click on the below link.
https://fifpro.org/media/jsjivecl/women-s-world-cup-player-survey.pdf
By Matlhomola Morake (with additional info by FIFPRO)
