Captain Millie Bright said England's comments about their premium dispute show they are “not just programmed to play football”. Photo: FIFA/Matt Roberts.
It all started with the Women's World Cup, but not in the way you might imagine. The tournament is only two days old, and we have already seen players arguing with their federation over bonuses, goaltenders criticizing sportswear giants for not replicating their jerseys, and the Australian hosts targeting the organizers because of the blatant disparity in the tournament's prize pools.
For so long, the US has been the flag bearer of women's soccer activism with their fight for equal pay. For so long they were the only ones who dared to rock the boat. Now more countries are joining the party, including England.
Some of the main grumblings that will appear this week came from the Lionesses camp, and it was quite revolutionary. The team's disappointment with the FA, which has no performance bonus yet, is another small milestone in the evolution of this great team that exploded in the nation's mind last summer with their historic Euro victory.
It's also a powerful reminder of just how much the women's game has progressed over the past four years. Come to think of it, four years ago, at the last tournament in France, Alex Morgan's celebration of “sipping tea” after scoring the game-winner that knocked out England in the semi-final was considered one of the most controversial events of the entire tournament. How times change.
Perhaps the most rewarding thing about the pitiful bonus saga is how British and wholly un-British it seemed. Supporting the idea “keep calm and continue in the same spirit”, players say that salary disputes will not be distracted during the tournament.
But, having taken an unprecedented step by publishing a joint statement of the players, before chewing fat with journalists at a long press conference, lionesses who will receive record 206,000 pounds, each, each They will win the world championship thanks to the improved bonuses of FIFA players, obviously do not joke. They let him explode in the court of public opinion, to the embarrassment of the FA.
Captain Millie Bright's comments that the Lionesses are “not just programmed to play football” reminded everyone that she and her teammates are not docile robots. In the fast-paced world of women's football, Bright's message was clear: passion no longer pays the bill.
England captain Millie Bright in a bonus line: “We're not just programmed to play football”
It may have been so in a past life. Who can forget the fearless, fed-up Republic of Ireland team in 2017 (who now made history in their first major women's tournament) who threatened to go on strike after accusing their governing body of failing to provide the team with adequate support, including being forced to change in public toilets on the way to a match and wear tracksuits borrowed from the men's youth teams.
Fast-forward eight years and we're still talking gear – or lack thereof. Mary Earps' No. 1 Lionesses' passionate slap at Nike this week for refusing to replicate her goalie jersey was yet another unexpected move by an English player.
It's the same sportswear conglomerate that designed the Lionesses' comfortable shorts with leak-proofing technology that they'll wear to the tournament this summer. But even that didn't stop Erps, named FIFA Women's Goalkeeper of the Year in February, from making a public statement.
Maybe it's because for a while the world of women's football was buzzing with covert activity. The women's teams of Canada and Spain have also found themselves in a stalemate with their respective federations over the past year, while Norwegian star Ada Hegerberg has completed the circle: the former Ballon d'Or winner is playing in the World Cup again after a five-year protest against her football association over payment terms.
To that end, the intervention of Erps and the Lionesses this week should hardly come as a surprise. Similarly, there should be no exposé video filmed on the eve of the tournament in Australia, in which FIFA criticizes FIFA for only offering a tournament prize pool that is a quarter of what was available for last year's Men's World Cup in Qatar.
It's been two weeks since Karen Carney's recently released report that predicted that women's football could become a “billion-pound industry” within the next decade, players are realizing its value. The authorities would also do well to admit this.
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