The comments come after United announced the departure of striker Alessia Russo (centre) this month due to the end of her contract . Photo: PA/Martin. Rickett
Speaking at the first European Football Association Women's Football Summit, United's head of group planning Francesca Whitfield expressed concern about the gap between bigger and smaller clubs.
She also said it was difficult to understand . how much did Manchester United have to invest to «match» their rivals because wages are growing faster than women's football revenue growth.
The Women's Super League, in which Manchester United finished second last term, currently has a soft salary cap in place whereby clubs can't spend more than 40 per cent of their player wage turnover, but the way that income is calculated is the source of some disputes in sports.
“Currently we have a pay cap system, but it includes parent club income, which means bigger clubs naturally benefit from men’s jersey deals and that creates a gap that impacts the product.” said Whitfield, who works with both men's and men's clubs. the women's sides of the club at Manchester United.
«I think we should aim to introduce financial regulation much earlier in the women's game than in the men's to stop the gap widening,
“We can’t just emulate or repeat what we did with the men’s team, the game is in a different space and we need to make sure we can invest, but we equally need to attract investment and smaller clubs can’t invest in This. level, so how do we encourage them to do so if it's not a fair game and they may never be able to compete with the way things are currently?»
“As an example, something more like American sports where you have a hard salary cap and then maybe franchised players from the US who are outside the salary cap because then that puts a damper on transfers and wages that we are seeing and contributing to the gap between bigger and smaller clubs because it will only get worse.”
Whitfield’s comment came after the season in which Manchester United qualified for the Women’s Champions League for the first time, but narrowly missed conceded the WSL title to Chelsea and added: “We know why we need to invest. «What is the right level of investment?»
“We are in a position where we need to spend enough to keep up and challenge our peers. And the minute one of them spends a little more or is willing to pay a record transfer fee, then we have to match that, and that's where the question is, «What's the right level?», because that minute wages are worth and growth transfer costs outpaced revenue growth. “
“And it's hard to say when that might catch up. So at this point it's literally a case of matching your competitor with no way to quantify.»
“[Which is why] we need some form of financial regulation and the ability, at some stage, to cap transfer fees and wage inflation, because it comes at the expense of investment in infrastructure around athletes who want to invest in training, in facilities, into medical nutrition.”
Analysis: is Manchester United's approach right? correct?
Whitfield's words provided an interesting insight into Manchester United's approach to women's football, as the club has set itself the goal of breaking even and being financially sustainable since reforming its senior women's side in 2018.
They also came into the month that Manchester United saw two of their first team stars leave the club on the expiration of their contracts, in England striker Alessia Russo and Spain right-back Ona Batlle, drawing criticism from some fans who don't think the club is doing enough to keep their best players.
Total spending on women's football over the past three years
WSL rivals Arsenal, Chelsea and Manchester City have been spending significantly more on women's football programs in recent years, according to financial reports. In 2021/22, for example, WSL champions Chelsea spent just over £8m, compared to Manchester United who spent just under £5m.
And yet, though this will frustrate many Manchester United fans who feel the owners could have spent more to win the women's silver, and there is no doubt much merit in the idea of aiming for a model where women's expenses per game do not exceed their income, whether it be now , at the investment stage or in the future.
The challenge for all sport is how to manage these costs, if at all possible, so as not to create highly fragmented competitions dominated by a small number of clubs, and in at the same time provide incentives for clubs to invest. and continue to promote women's sports and become more professional.
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