On the day of departure to the FIFA Women’s World Cup in France, the South African national women’s football team were told they will receive R320 000 if they make it out of the group stages.
No one likes to ruin a good party by mentioning money. Good manners dictate that discussing how much money someone makes, is impolite. In the instance of women’s sport, this however is a “must-go-have-to-go” area of conversation.
SAFA president, Danny Jordaan pre-empted the answer for journalists present at the send-off party for Banyana Banyana at the Sasol head-quarters today when he announced that provision had been made for the teams’ bonuses.
If the Desiree Ellis led squad make it out the group stages, each player will receive R320 000. Jordaan added that it is “the same amount that Bafana Bafana will get if they get out the group stages”.
The senior national men’s team will be competing at the Africa Cup of Nations to be played in Egypt beginning of the 21st of June. Now that Stuart Baxter’s men know how much it would mean to their bank balance to see past Ivory Coast; Morocco and Namibia in their pool at their tenth appearance at the tournament, Banyana players were pleased to hear the news.
Former CAF women’s player of the year, Noko Matlou, who has 152 caps to her name said “If you look way back, Bafana were getting much better than us, we are happy that the association has made it equal.”
University of Pretoria’s Busisiwe Ndimeni has 26 caps to her name and when asked about the bonus announcement, laughed and said, “money for me, is a way of living, soccer is life for me. Money is just there to help me put up things and get me to where I want to go.”
Banyana were promised 2.4 million by the federation in December after they ended as runners up at the Women AFCON tournament. It was their performance at that event in Ghana which saw South Africa make history and qualify for the first time to participate at the FIFA Women’s World Cup which begins on the 7th of June.
With the most successful nation in the history of the tournament – the US women’s soccer team having an ongoing case against US Soccer and the German national team taking a poke at their national football federation about a tea set given to them after they won their first continental title in a recent advert, speaking about the gender pay gap that exists will be a hot topic in France.
South Africa will face Norway in their final World Cup warm up match on Saturday the 2nd of June in Amiens. South Africa are in Group B alongside Spain; China and Germany for the World Cup and their first match of the tournament is against Spain on 8 June.
