The Republic of Ireland Women's National Team will receive the same pay as the men's equivalent after a deal with the FAI was announced this afternoon.
The women's side have long been seeking the same treatment as the men's team, and while progress has been made in many ways in this regard during recent years, being given equal pay was seen as a key step in this process.
FAI CEO Jonathan Hill and Ciaran Medlar, advisor to the male and female international players, alongside captains Katie McCabe and Seamus Coleman, all played a part in getting this deal over the line.
It will see the women's team receive the same pay as the men's side going forward from the September international window.
EQUAL PAY AGREED 🇮🇪
A historic day for Irish football as the FAI agrees equal pay deal with WNT & MNT squads ahead of their World Cup qualifiers 🤝
Read More 👉 https://t.co/6Hiw85DxSS#WeAreOne | #COYBIG | #COYGIG pic.twitter.com/w8N0JXhC10— FAIreland ⚽️🇮🇪 (@FAIreland) August 30, 2021
As part of the deal, the men's team will see their match fees reduced, while the FAI will also make a contribution in order to ensure both sides are paid the same amount.
There will also be changes made to ensure that both the male and female teams will be treated the same when it comes to possible major tournament qualification in the future.
Speaking after the announcement was made, Republic of Ireland WNT captain Katie McCabe thanked the FAI and the men's team for their help in this 'huge step forward' for the women's game.
This is a great day for Irish football. We have taken a huge step forward with this deal and have shown the world what can be achieved through unity as we offer male and female international players the same opportunities.
I am very proud as Ireland captain of the work that has been put in to get us to this point, not just by the current team but by so many Irish players in the past. They are the real heroes in this story, they took a stand and they passed on the baton to the current generation.
Seamus Coleman and his team-mates in the Senior Men’s squad also deserve credit for being brave enough to support us in such a progressive way on this issue. It is really appreciated.
I also want to thank Jonathan Hill and Ciaran Medlar for their roles in this agreement. The relationship between the FAI and the Senior Women’s team is stronger than I have ever known it and we look forward to continuing to work together to make Irish football better for everyone who plays our game, regardless of their identity or background.
Men's captain Seamus Coleman also spoke on the matter, saying he was delighted to see parity in pay moving forward.
On behalf of the Senior Men’s squad, I welcome this news today. We are delighted as players to do what we can to ensure that our female international players are treated equally and fairly and we remain fully committed to doing whatever we can to achieve that goal together.
This deal is the right one for everyone who plays international football for Ireland, no matter which team they represent. We have been working towards this agreement for some time now with Katie, Jonathan and Ciaran and I hope this acts as an inspiration to many other nations to follow suit.
Ireland are amongst the first nations to introduce such a pay structure, with England and Brazil doing the same last year to follow on from the example set by Australia, Norway and New Zealand.
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