Women’s World Cup Qualifying Conditions: A Call for Change
The world players’ union, Fifpro, has recently released a survey of 362 players that reveals the poor conditions many players had to endure during Women’s World Cup qualifying. The survey revealed that 29% of players were not paid for qualification games, 54% did not receive a pre-tournament medical examination, 70% did not receive heart monitoring before qualifying began, and 39% did not have access to mental health support. In addition, two-thirds of the players surveyed had to take leave or unpaid leave from another form of employment to participate in qualifying, and 66% said recovery facilities were not elite standard or provided at all.
Fifpro has called on FIFA to improve conditions for all players in qualification for the next World Cup. Sarah Gregorius, Fifpro women’s football lead, said “Any stat below 100% in access to important medical checks is unacceptable. We just want to work with whoever wants to work with us, particularly Fifa and the confederations, to understand why that is the case and how that can be prevented [from happening again] because that is certainly not something that should be acceptable to anybody.”
Lack of Level Playing Field in Women’s Game
The survey also revealed that 31% said training pitches were not of an elite standard, while 32% said match day pitches and stadia were not good enough. In addition, 70% were unhappy with gym facilities and a third of players surveyed said they did not have enough time between matches.
An anonymous Uefa player said “My concerns are that some team accommodations and facilities are better than others, so some teams are better rested for games. One thing is that all teams should have the same standard off the pitch, to make sure on the pitch we are playing fair.”
Qualification Format Called into Question
Fifpro also criticised the qualification process for often being determined through performance in other tournaments, such as the Copa America, and said it should also be a standalone event across all confederations. Uefa was the only confederation to host a dedicated World Cup qualification tournament, with players involved in up to 12 games to ensure qualification. No other tournament leading to World Cup qualification saw players involved in more than seven matches.
In the Conmebol (South American) confederation, qualification matches for the World Cup, Olympics and Pan-American Games were all played in the same month.
Fifa Praised for Listening to Players
Fifpro praised Fifa for “listening to the voice of players” in ensuring those playing at the finals in Australia and New Zealand this summer will benefit from the same conditions as their male counterparts in Qatar last year – but wants this expanded to qualification.
The foreword to the qualifying conditions report, co-signed by Fifpro president David Aganzo and general secretary Jonas Baer-Hoffmann, read: “During qualification the conditions that the players are exposed to and expected to deliver in, during some of the biggest competitive moments of their lives, are not up to the standards of elite international football, putting both the players and the sport at risk.”
Conclusion
In highlighting these conditions and the status of players across the globe, Fifpro firmly calls on the industry to take a closer look at the qualification processes in each of the six confederations. This is so we all can commit to meaningful changes that look at the overall opportunities the FIFA Women’s World Cup can deliver to a greater number of players than those that just appear at the final tournament in July and August this year.