Wales men’s and women’s players will be paid equally for the first time after a landmark agreement was reached with the Football Association of Wales.
The new deal covers the period up to and including the 2026 men’s World Cup and the 2027 Women’s World Cup.
The men’s and women’s teams released a joint statement in response to the announcement on Wednesday: “Together Stronger has been the mantra across the Cymru national teams for us all, both on and off the pitch as we look to put Wales on the world stage.
“As part of the FAW’s strive towards equality, we are now proud to announce that together, our men’s and women’s teams have agreed to an equal pay structure for future international matches.
“We hope that this will allow future generations of boys and girls to see that there is equality across Welsh international football, which is important for society as a whole.
“With this agreement in place, we will now look ahead to the UEFA Euro 2024 and 2025 qualifying campaigns, as we aim to see further success across both our senior teams in the near future.”
England’s men’s and women’s senior players have been paid the same match fee for representing their country since January 2020, while the Republic of Ireland agreed a similar deal in August 2021.
FAW CEO Noel Mooney added: “The FAW is a modern, progressive movement that seeks to improve each day. This is another step towards becoming one of the world’s great sports organisations and we thank both the Men’s and Women’s squads for their brilliant co-operation in getting this agreed.”
Scotland’s female internationals last month launched legal action against the Scottish Football Association (SFA) over equal pay and treatment claims.
Rachel Corsie, the Scotland women’s national team captain, is the lead claimant in the employment tribunal case against the SFA. She told Sky Sports News the move stemmed from a sense of “disrespect and lacking value” which had been felt over a “considerable period”.
The players are demanding a contract stipulating equal pay – something the SFA has since claimed is already the case – and treatment compared to their male counterparts on issues such as training facilities, hotels, travel, kit, plus medical and nutritional resources.