The prize money for the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup will increase by 300% to $150 million, informed FIFA President Gianni Infantino at the 73rd FIFA Congress in Kigali, Rwanda on March 16.
While the Women’s World Cup prize money is now three times the 2019 figure and 10 times more than in 2015, it is still considerably lower than the $440 million total prize money of the FIFA Men’s World Cup in Qatar last year.
Infantino made the prize money announcement in his closing remarks at the FIFA Congress, describing it to be a “historic journey for women’s football and for equality” that “will lead us to a path to equal pay.” He said that there will be equal conditions and services for all men and women playing at a World Cup, and would include a dedicated marketing strategy for the women’s game. “Our mission will be able to have equality in payments for (the) 2026 men’s and 2027 women’s World Cups,” he said.
Last year, the United States Women’s National Team earned more money, i.e., $6.5 million, from its male equivalent reaching the knockout stages of Qatar 2022 than it did from winning World Cup tournaments in 2015 and 2019. Under the equal pay agreement forged between the United States Soccer Federation, the United States Women’s National Team Players Association and the United States National Soccer Team Players Association, the men and women’s teams split all World Cup earnings.
Australia and New Zealand will co-host the 2023 Women’s World Cup, from July 20 to August 20.
