FIFA claimed this Wednesday, May 31 “justice and respect” in the sale of rights for the broadcast of the Women’s World Cup in Australia and New Zealand 2023 and pointed out that the offers from some markets, compared to those of the men’s World Cup last year, “do not reflect the value of the game”.
“Offers of only 1-3% in some markets, compared to last year’s World Cup, do not reflect the value of the game. The morning audiences will be high in Europe. More profit equals more investment in women’s football,” FIFA media relations director Bryan Swanson said on social media.
FIFA’s appeal came this Wednesday after the governments of Germany, Spain, France, Italy and the United Kingdom expressed their concern that there is no agreement in their respective countries for the transmission of the championship and asked the parties to mobilize to reach a compromise quickly.
The sports ministers of these five countries assured in a statement published this Wednesday that “the media exposure of women’s sports has a very significant impact for the development of sports practice among women and girls«.
Given that potential, ministers consider it their duty “fully mobilize” to the parties involved, that is, FIFA as the owner of the television rights and the broadcasters as potential buyers of those rights to “quickly reach an agreement”.
On the 22nd, in Madrid, the FIFA Secretary General, Fatma Samoura, highlighted the value of an event like the World Cup and pleaded for an agreement as soon as possible to close the sale of the rights to the competition, which will be played from July 20 to August 20.
«We want even out the differences one day between the footballers, but we cannot develop women’s football alone. We have partners such as sponsors and television rights holders and our idea is very simple, this tournament has value and we have seen it when we have decided to separate the sale of the rights for the men’s and women’s World Cups,” said Samorua, who participated in the presentation of the Women’s World Cup trophy at the Ciudad del Fútbol de Las Rozas (Madrid). EFE