Women's billion-dollar boom leaves players behind, says Fifpro — SkimNews
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- Fifpro surveyed over 800 women professional footballers globally, finding 59% of those considering leaving the game cited financial reasons and 46% cited psychological stress
- Global women's football revenue is projected to rise from $581m in 2024 to over $1bn by 2027, yet 57% of surveyed players said their club pay did not even cover basic playing costs
- Average monthly pay ranges from $6,450 in North America to $480 in Africa, with a global median of just $1,669 — a figure that has nonetheless tripled since 2017
- Alex Culvin, Fifpro's head of women's football, warned the boom is concentrated in 'the top 5% of players' while 24% experienced late payments, 42% received no pension, and only two-thirds were paid year-round
- 57% of respondents reported struggling with mental health, yet half said their clubs provided no support, per the report
- A counterpoint buried in the report: family-related exits fell from roughly 50% in 2017 to 19% today, which Culvin credits to FIFA's 2021 maternity regulations — proof, she said, that 'targeted regulatory intervention works'
Why it matters: With women's football on track to clear $1bn in revenue by 2027 but the median player earning $1,669 a month, federations and clubs face mounting pressure to deliver baseline protections — 12-month contracts, pensions, mental health support — before the commercial engine runs out of players willing to fuel it.
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