LONDON — Women's soccer is on course to become a billion-dollar industry, but a global survey of more than 800 professional players says many are still earning low wages on insecure contracts while facing rising psychological stress. The Fifpro report projects global revenue will rise from about $581 million (£439 million) in 2024 to over $1 billion (£756 million) in 2027, yet 59% of respondents cited financial reasons as a factor that could drive them to leave the game early and 46% cited psychological stress.
Alex Culvin, head of women's football at Fifpro, said there was no single explanation for the increase in stress, pointing to growing public exposure, financial insecurity and inadequate support systems. "Players are now very visible," she said. "Players are not only expected to be visible, but are obligated to be visible because of the low income to subsidise the lack of solid income they receive." The survey found 57% of respondents struggled with their mental health and half of them were not provided with support by their clubs, with Culvin adding, "Players also reported, whilst having a higher psychological stress, that they didn't have the support they needed in a mental health sense, either at the club or internationally."
The report highlights a gap between commercial growth and professional status. Under FIFA's definition, a professional has a written contract and is paid more than expenses, yet only 62% of top-tier players surveyed described themselves as professional, with 27% semi-professional and 12% amateur. Only 78% reported having a written contract and 82% said they were paid by their club, but just 57% said that payment was enough to cover the costs of playing. Mean average monthly earnings have tripled since 2017 to $2,601 (£1,970), but the median is just $1,669 (£1,250), with stark regional divides — $6,450 in North America and $3,982 in central/Western Europe compared to $878 in Eastern Europe and $480 in Africa.
Contract security remains limited despite average lengths rising from about one year in 2017 to 19 months. "Only two-thirds of players are paid for the whole 12 months," Culvin said. "There's a lot of players who are on seven-month contracts, nine-month contracts, which means that they've got to work to make up the rest of the calendar year." The survey also found 24% experienced late payments over the past two seasons and 42% were not provided with a pension, conditions that helped prompt strike action by Real Madrid and Barcelona players in Spain's Liga F in 2023 as unions sought improved pay and conditions.
Culvin warned the boom could obscure daily realities, saying, "The economic case for women's football has been made," and "I think the institutional regulatory and policy case needs to catch up quickly to protect and enhance our women's players and enable them to perform maximally." She added, "I think there's a wake-up call needed for the ecosystem, that our players are suffering and that there is not the kind of wraparound support and accountability that's needed for players." One improvement was parenthood, where the share considering leaving to start a family fell from nearly half in 2017 to 19% now, which Fifpro attributes in part to FIFA maternity regulations introduced in 2021 and updated two years ago.