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TLDR; The 2026 FIFPRO Women's Football Global Employment Report
Published in collaboration with Manchester Metropolitan University, FIFPRO’s 2026 Global Employment Report pulls back the curtain on women’s football.
What insights does the report actually reveal? Below is a breakdown of the findings for anyone looking for a more concise TLDR highlight version.
THE REPORT
The report itself is the most extensive review of working conditions in women's football in a decade, gathering data through surveys across 30 countries spanning six geographical regions, focusing on the day to day realities of professional female players. It reveals that while global revenue is skyrocketing toward a billion dollar boom, the everyday professional players driving the sport are facing deep financial and mental strain.
MONEY AND CONTRACTS
The Wage Divide: The global monthly average salary sits at $2,570, but the median (middle) monthly salary is just $1,669 (amounting to an annual median of $18,837). This disparity reveals that high earners skew the average upward, while the typical player earns far less.
Short Contracts and Unpaid Months: Job security remains fragile. The average club contract lasts only 19 months and only two-thirds of professional players globally are paid for a full 12 months of the year. This means the players earning the least are also the most likely to go completely unpaid during the off-season.
Late Payments and Side Hustles: 24% of players report experiencing a financial shortfall or a delay in payment over a two-season span. To make ends meet, 31% of players balance football with a second job, while 39% combine their careers with ongoing studies. Many also rely heavily on social media monetisation to subsidise their living expenses, inadvertently exposing themselves to online abuse.
PLAYER WELLBEING AND MENTAL HEALTH
Stress and Mental Health: Nearly half of all players (49%) consider leaving the game early. While financial strain is the primary driver (59%), psychological stress has surged to become the second-biggest driver at 46%, a dramatic rise from 13% in FIFPRO’s 2017 findings. Disordered eating also affects one in five players within a 12-month period.
Club Support: On average globally, 57% of respondents have struggled with their mental health. On top of that, 50% of those players received zero supportive resources from their club.
Time off and Online Abuse: Nearly half of respondents (47%) report that clubs are understaffed to meet basic player needs and 32% feel they do not get adequate days off during the season. Furthermore, during international tournaments, players face rampant online toxicity, monitoring during the 2023 World Cup revealed that 1 in 5 players were targeted with discriminatory, racial, sexual or homophobic abuse.
CREDIT; FIFPRO CREDIT; FIFPRO
RETIREMENT AND PENSION
Retirement: Roughly four out of five players either have no retirement provision or are entirely in the dark about it. Specifically, 42% of players receive no pension at all and an additional 38% do not even know if they have one. Only 13% are provided a pension directly by their club.
Vulnerability After Short Careers: The short career length and low earnings of female football players mean that they have no pension savings and are left to their own devices after retirement. The increase in the number of players who are represented by agents (41% of all players, compared to 14% in 2017), representation however drops lowest in regions such as Africa, Asia/Oceania and Eastern Europe, that suffer from the worst pay and pension deficits.
MATERNITY AND PATERNITY PROTECTION
Historic Win: Following FIFPRO's advocacy, FIFA introduced mandatory maternity regulations in 2021 into the RSTP (Regulations on the Status and Transfer of Players). Guaranteeing a minimum of 14 weeks of paid maternity leave at two-thirds salary successfully dismantled the old normal, where starting a family effectively meant ending a career.
The Loophole: Despite this progress, a major loophole remains. If a contract expires while a player is pregnant, her maternity rights instantly lapse and no further payment is due. Given that the average contract lasts less than two years, a pregnancy coinciding with an expiring deal creates a cliff edge for player security.
FIFPRO’S CALL TO ACTION
FIFPRO emphasises that commercial growth and player protection must advance together as a single project. Because the industry's long-term sustainability depends on a secure workforce, responsibility is shared across four key pillars:
FIFA - Set the Global Floor: Build on past wins by establishing enforceable global minimum standards for calendars, scheduling, contracts, mental health, pension and dispute resolution. These rules must act strictly as a safety net (a floor) rather than a ceiling that inhibits further investment.
Regional Confederations - Close Regional Gaps: Step in between global rules and domestic leagues to establish clear employment standards, support member associations and rigorously monitor application so rights are universal, not a privilege of wealthy regions.
Club Licensing - Make Protection Mandatory: Use club licensing to make player welfare an absolute condition of competing. Licensing must mandate written contracts, on-time pay, medical and mental health support and safe workplaces across entire domestic leagues, backed by real consequences.
Collective Agreements - Turn the Floor into a Lived Reality: Expand collective bargaining, (currently present in only 8 of 30 leagues studied), to secure fair wages, contracts and pensions. Leagues and clubs must actively involve players through independent unions in decisions regarding workloads, scheduling and commercial growth.
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