Women’s football’s billion-dollar boom leaves most players short-changed, Fifpro warns

Rapid growth, uneven rewards

Women’s football is on course to become a billion-dollar industry, but a new Fifpro survey suggests much of that growth has yet to translate into secure livelihoods for the players driving it. The players’ union surveyed more than 800 footballers and found widespread financial insecurity, short-term employment and limited support for mental health.

Global revenue in the women’s game is projected to rise from about $581m in 2024 to more than $1bn in 2027. Fifpro says that expansion risks obscuring conditions faced by players beyond the sport’s wealthiest clubs and leagues.

Pay and contracts remain precarious

While average monthly earnings have tripled since Fifpro’s previous survey in 2017, reaching $2,601, the median is considerably lower at $1,669. The report found sharp regional differences: average monthly pay was $6,450 in North America and $3,982 in central and western Europe, compared with $480 in Africa. In 10 Eastern European countries, average pay remained below the national minimum wage.

Only 78% of respondents said they had a written contract, and 82% said their club paid them. Just 57% said their football income covered the costs of playing. Average contract length has risen from about a year in 2017 to 19 months, but only two-thirds of players said they were paid throughout all 12 months. Nearly a quarter had experienced late payment over the previous two seasons, while 42% said they had no pension provision.

“There’s a lot of players who are on seven-month contracts, nine-month contracts, which means that they’ve got to work to make up the rest of the calendar year,” said Alex Culvin, Fifpro’s head of women’s football.

Psychological strain rises

Financial pressures were cited by 59% of respondents as a reason they might leave football early. Psychological stress was cited by 46%, up from 13% in the union’s 2017 survey. Overall, 57% said they had struggled with their mental health, and half of that group said their clubs had not provided support.

Culvin said there was no single explanation for the increase, pointing to public exposure, financial insecurity and inadequate support systems. Players’ greater visibility online can bring them closer to fans, but also exposes them to harassment and abuse. “Players are not only expected to be visible, but are obligated to be visible because of the low income to subsidise the lack of solid income they receive,” she said.

The survey also found a gap between players’ working arrangements and their sense of professional status. Although all respondents played for top-tier clubs in their countries, 27% described themselves as semi-professional and 12% as amateur. Culvin said players who do not feel professional may be missing out on the protections and benefits associated with employee status.

Fifpro calls for safeguards to catch up

Fifpro argues that commercial expansion should go hand in hand with stronger protections. “The economic case for women’s football has been made,” Culvin said. “I think the institutional regulatory and policy case needs to catch up quickly to protect and enhance our women’s players.”

The report did identify progress on parenthood. The share of players who said wanting a family could prompt them to leave football fell from nearly half in 2017 to 19%. Fifpro linked the improvement partly to maternity regulations introduced by Fifa in 2021 and updated two years later, which Culvin described as evidence that targeted regulation can work.

“There doesn’t need to be a choice between commercial growth and player protection,” Culvin said. “Those two things need to go hand in hand and work in tandem.”