The pay gap in women’s football is closing, but one big step still remains. FIFA has agreed to double the prize money for the Women’s World Cup and to raise the preparation payments women’s national teams receive to match the men’s, though the total pool will still fall short of the men’s tournament.
The move, reported across Sky News, The Guardian and Sports Business Journal, is the latest attempt by world football’s governing body to narrow a gap that has defined the sport for years. FIFA will double the Women’s World Cup prize money, and it has increased the preparation money paid to each women’s team to the same level the men’s teams already get. Even with those changes, the women’s tournament’s overall prize fund will stay below what the men’s World Cup pays.
For players, the shift lands well before kickoff. National teams that qualify for the next Women’s World Cup will benefit from the higher per-team payments and the larger shared pool, which flow down to the squads and, ultimately, the athletes who play.
What this means for the game: Equal preparation money removes one long-standing complaint that women’s teams had to plan and prepare on thinner budgets than the men. But as long as the total prize fund stays lower, the debate over full parity will continue, and pressure will build on FIFA to close the remaining gap.
Why the numbers still do not match
Doubling a prize fund sounds like a full fix, but the story is in the comparison. FIFA has matched the men on preparation payments, yet the overall Women’s World Cup pool still trails the men’s event. That mix of progress and shortfall is why the announcement is welcome news that stops short of equality.
The United States offers the clearest example of where the sport is headed. US Soccer already splits World Cup prize money equally between its men’s and women’s teams, so the national side has outpaced its own federation’s global counterpart on pay. That contrast keeps the pressure on FIFA to move the whole sport closer to parity, not just part of the way.
The doubling also fits a wider pattern in women’s sport, where broadcasters, sponsors and governing bodies have slowly raised the value of the women’s game. Each increase builds on the last, and this one puts more money directly into the teams that compete.
Will the Women’s World Cup ever match the men’s prize money? Not yet. FIFA has doubled the women’s prize fund and equalized preparation payments, but the total still falls below the men’s tournament. The step narrows the gap rather than closing it, and the next round of announcements will show whether full parity is on the agenda.
Progress in women’s football rarely arrives all at once. The doubling is a real increase, and the equal preparation money answers a specific, long-running grievance. Whether it is enough will depend on what FIFA does next. Check back for updates as the sport pushes toward full pay parity.
