Staging a men’s World Cup every two years would be “profoundly detrimental” and “fundamentally alter the course and development of the women’s game”, says a joint statement from Uefa and 10 of Europe’s women’s leagues.
Co-signed by England’s Women’s Super League, the statement lays out possible negative impacts of Fifa’s plans.
It says “careful reflection” is needed after a “very selective consultation”.
The leagues are calling for an “open forum” to discuss proposals.
They say they have a “progressive mindset” towards the game’s development but add that care is required, given the “women’s football ecosystem is growing at pace but has not fully matured”.
In September men’s leagues confirmed their opposition to world governing body Fifa’s plans, which would mean the women’s World Cup taking place in the same summer as a major men’s tournament.
Former Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger is leading a group looking at the men’s game, while ex-United States coach Jill Ellis is overseeing an advisory group working on proposals for the women’s game.
Fifa’s plan may also result in a clash between World Cups and the Olympic Games – a significant event in the women’s calendar.
The joint statement lists 13 possible consequences of reducing the time between World Cups, including:
- Reducing the visibility and growth of women’s competitions because of congestion in the men’s calendar
- Placing strain on resources for women’s national team players as they are focused on men’s competitions
- Greater risk of physical injury and mental health impacts because of “more concentrated matches”
- Interrupting professionalisation and investment due to “a saturation of markets”, meaning women’s football may not be financially viable
- Reducing opportunities for developing nations, who may not have the resources to compete so regularly
As well as England’s WSL and Women’s Championship, the statement was signed by European governing body Uefa, the European Club Association, and leagues in Denmark, Germany, Finland, Italy, the Netherlands, Romania, Sweden and Switzerland.
Condensing windows is an interesting one – Fifpro
Global players’ union Fifpro has voiced concerns that the “chance to have a reasonable and effective reform” in football was being undermined by everything being “aligned to the commercial interests of different competitions”.
“We would really like to try to differentiate between conversations about the calendar and that about competitions. These are two very separate conversations,” said Fifpro general secretary Jonas Baer-Hoffmann.
However, Baer-Hoffmann was not as critical as others about some of Fifa’s proposals, which include either one (October) or two (October and March) month-long mid-season international breaks when qualifying for major tournaments, rather than the current five international windows.
Fifa plans also include guaranteed rest periods of 25 days for players once tournaments are over.
“Condensing windows is an interesting one,” added Baer-Hoffmann.
“We had a first meeting with Fifa about this about a week ago. There is a lot in this whole proposal we still need to look at and analyse.
“Reducing windows would be a positive as it would reduce travel. Fifa are also suggesting going from 10 games we have in the current window down to seven.
“I see upsides for coaches who would have more time to work with players, so there is merit.”
