England women's contract offer 'embarrassing', says PFA
Last updated on .From the section Football
Players' union chief Gordon Taylor says the Football Association's £18,000-a-year contract offer to England's top women players is "embarrassing".
Hope Powell's squad have decided not to sign their central contracts after advice from the Professional Footballers' Association (PFA).
Taylor says the offer does not reflect the popularity of the women's game.
"Come on, that figure is embarrassing. Top Premier League players are earning more in a day," he said.
The PFA is seeking to reach an agreement with the FA as England women's previous £16,000-a-year deal ended in November and players went unpaid last month.
It is understood that negotiations between the PFA and FA centre around the additional 24 hours players are allowed to work each week in addition to players' central contracts and money they receive on a semi-professional basis from their clubs.
England have qualified for Euro 2013 in Sweden while the 2012 Olympics proved a big hit with fans, more than 70,000 turning out at Wembley for the GB women's win over Brazil.
Taylor said: "I am surprised the FA have not been more responsive to the girls' reasonable demand.
"In some ways, [the FA] have done a lot for the women's game, which now has increased TV coverage and obviously the facility at St George's Park [the recently opened FA centre of excellence in Burton] is available for both male and female players.
"But they are offering to move these central contracts up from £16,000, which has been the figure since 2009, to £18,000."
Some players have to take part-time jobs to supplement their income, but training demands for club and country mean players cannot always find employment that offers enough flexibility.
England and Lincoln Ladies defender Sophie Bradley told the BBC: "I think it's now got to the point where we need to be rewarded because of the amount of people who are interested in watching us play and the progression of the game."
The squad is at St George's Park for fitness testing before flying to La Manga in Spain on Sunday for a week-long training camp.
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These women already earn great money to play sport. I'd swap in an instant as would most people.
They are entertainers. Not so many people are interested and pay to watch the women's game. That's just market forces.
This article is about greed and envy.
Its not misogynistic to say that I dont like watching women's football because its slow and dull - like low league mens.
Painful, unwatchable rubbish.
Sadly, it's not about ability, it's about money, and always will be. The women's game doesn't generate enough to warrant a bigger contract.
Loads of people watched handball over the Olympics too. Without looking, who sponsors handball?
Exactly.
Get women watching women's football, then the wages would go up.
Because plenty of people pay to watch them. Whatever you may think about the sum being offered, the cold hard fact is that spectator sport is supply and demand. If there is no demand for the women's game then you can't justify higher wages.
I would snap the FA's hand off if I were them!
25 girls at £20k equals £500k and would represent a good increase (25%) for their efforts.
In t'old days, touring England cricketers would have to pay for own passage to Australia for Ashes, leaving family to fend for themselves, spending weeks at sea playing quoits & sending telegrams to break monotony.
Then having to press own flannels before taking the field short of any practice and cleaned up before you could say Wisden.
Don`t know they're born:)
If you compare that to the male leagues then you are looking at tier 8 or Evostick North league 1. Most of the players at this level would happily take 18K.
As soon as woman can attract larger crowds then they can demand more money.