- FA has not committed to World Cup bonuses for Lionesses
- Bronze hoped to have this resolved before the tournament
- World Cup in Australia and New Zealand begins later this month
WHAT HAPPENED? A FIFA rule change for the Women's World Cup will see players earn a set bonus according to performance, meaning every player from the country that wins the trophy will receive $270,000 (£210,000), and all those eliminated at the group stage will receive $30,000 (£23,000).
The Football Association (FA) and the Lionesses have been in discussions over separate performance-related bonuses for the squad at this summer’s Women’s World Cup, but The Telegraph states that as of yet, no agreement has been reached. The report adds the Professional Footballers’ Association are continuing to provide the Lionesses players with support in those talks and it is hoped a deal can be finalised with the FA.
WHAT THEY SAID: Bronze told Sky Sports ahead of the 32-team tournament, which begins on July 20: "It is frustrating but I think that’s the way the women’s game has predominantly been. As a team we’ve always been pushing in the background, it’s only been recently that it’s been made more public and people are aware of it, but it’s something we’ve always had to do as players.
"Someone like [former England captain] Steph Houghton previously is someone who did a lot of work behind the scenes that probably wasn’t reported on and people didn’t know as much about. I think we’re in a similar situation now, and I think the point of the players and everyone involved in women’s football is about taking it to the next level and pushing the ceiling, not wanting to have a ceiling put on our game, and making sure we leave the game in a better place than what we found it."
THE BIGGER PICTURE: Previously in World Cups, prize money had been paid directly to individual footballing associations and it was therefore down to each individual nation's discretion to decide how much the players would be paid from the prize fund. However, that is no longer the case.
Next Match
Sky Sports claims, for the first time, the English FA stands to lose money on this World Cup, no matter how well the team does; due to the costs of hotels, flights, equipment, and support staff. Conversely, the players feel aggrieved the FA is not prepared to fund these extra bonuses, rather than allowing FIFA to foot the bill.
Sky adds the Lionesses stand to earn, on average, 60% more for their appearance at this World Cup compared with the one from four years ago. Rewards for failing to reach the knockout stages are 300% higher this time compared with 2019, and 700% higher than in 2015.
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WHAT NEXT? The tournament gets underway when New Zealand host Norway on July 20. England begin their World Cup campaign on July 22 against Haiti.