Cape Town - Christmas will come early for the 23 players who will be selected for Banyana Banyana for the Women’s World Cup in Australia and New Zealand starting next month.
Each player in the squad will be paid directly by Fifa. For the group, whether a player plays or remains a reserve throughout, the pay-out will be $30 000 (R556 509)). This money could be life-changing for some players.
Banyana are drawn in Group G with Sweden, Italy and Argentina. All three countries are higher ranked, and it is expected that the South Africans will not progress to the last-16 round.
If by some miracle, the team does reach the Round of 16, every one of the 23 players will be millionaires. The pay-out to each player will be twice as much and will be R1.1-million ($60 000).
Players who end up in the eventual winning squad will each earn a whopping R5.1m. The winning federation will receive R79.5m.
The 32 federations (32 teams) and the clubs will also strike it rich. If Banyana exits the group stage, Fifa will pay Safa R30m. Fifa expects the federations to use the funds to support football development in their countries.
The clubs of the players will be paid by Fifa and with each appearance the money increases. A club like Sundowns stands to make a fortune because they will supply the bulk of the Banyana Banyana squad.
It also makes sense that Banyana draw heavily on Sundowns because their players had the experience of playing in successive Champions League tournaments and will bring much-needed experience.
"Under this unprecedented new distribution model, each player at the Fifa Women’s World Cup 2023 can now fully rely on remuneration for their efforts as they progress through the tournament," said Fifa President Gianni Infantino.
"The global salary of women’s professional footballers is approximately $14 000 (R259 704) annually so the amounts allocated under this unprecedented new distribution model will have a real and meaningful impact on the lives and careers of these players," he added.
"Beyond this, all member associations will also receive a record financial distribution based on their performance, which they can use to reinvest back into football in their countries and which we believe will help to propel the women’s game even further.
"As a father of four beautiful daughters, I know how much attention we need to give women. Women deserve much, much more than that and we are there to fight for them and with them."
Fifa will allot $110m in prize money for the Women’s World Cup 2023, a considerable increase from the $30m for the 2019 finals in France.
@Herman_Gibbs