FIFA announces pay per player breakdown for the Women's World Cup

2023 tournament will see a large increase in player income compared to the tournament four years ago

The 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup will see a total prize pool worth $110 million. The prize pool is a major increase on the purse for the tournament four years ago in France.

The previous Women’s World Cup featured a $30m prize purse, but since then, women’s football has grown considerably around the world. Although there is still a standoff between FIFA and broadcasters over the rights to show the tournament in Europe, players should be pleased with the increase in payments for this year’s event.

The tournament kicks off on July 20 in Auckland, New Zealand. The month-long event will be played in Australia and New Zealand, similar to the 2002 men’s World Cup in South Korea and Japan. The United States is aiming for its fifth Women’s World Cup trophy and third in a row.

According to figures recently released by FIFA, each player for the winning team at the Women’s World Cup will receive $270,000.

The Women’s World Cup runner-up will go home with $195,000 per player, while third place will get $180,000 per player. The amount of money players can make is significant. Salaries in the women’s game pale in comparison to men’s football. This is mostly due to fewer fans attending matches and lower broadcasting rights being paid to show games — if they are shown at all.

The NWSL, the top flight of women’s soccer in the United States, has an average salary of $54,000 per player currently. FIFA will pay each player in the group stage of the 2023 tournament $30,000, over half the average salary of the American league’s annual player salary.

Who is the highest-paid women’s footballer in the world?

The highest-paid women’s footballer in the world is Chelsea striker Sam Kerr. The Australian, a former NWSL player, joined Chelsea in November 2019. She earns £417,000 per season (approximately $518,745.90).

United States Women’s National Team players Alex Morgan (£375,000) and Megan Rapinoe (£373,000) are the second and third highest-paid players per season in women’s football, respectively.

How much money did the men’s teams receive for the 2023 World Cup?

FIFA handed out $440m in prize money for the men’s tournament in November and December 2023. Each team received an extra $1.5m for simply qualifying for the tournament in Qatar. World Cup winners Argentina earned $42m, while runners-up France earned $30m.

The 16 teams that did not progress past the group stage all received $9m for participating in the tournament.