Spanish players announce strike for equal pay – 9/2/2023 – Sport

After winning the World Cup, Spanish women’s football faces a troubled moment, marked by demonstrations in defense of the player Jenni Hermoso and the demand for gender equality in sport. The Association of Spanish Footballers announced a strike during the first rounds of the Women’s League.

The stoppage will happen because of the lack of agreement with the League for better salary conditions for the athletes. They call for reducing the pay gap between men’s and women’s players.

The strike must take place in the first two rounds of the championship, which would be played between the 8th and 10th of September and from the 15th to the 17th of the same month. Among the main players are Alexia Putellas, current champion and elected the best player in the world, Aitana Bonmatí, star of the Cup, Lucy Bronze and the Brazilians Kathellen, Ludmila and Gabi Nunes.

The rift between the athletes on the national team and Jorge Vilda’s coaching staff is also part of the crisis in the sport.

Our players taught the world a lesson, says Spanish Prime Minister

This Saturday (2), the Spanish Prime Minister, Pedro Sánchez, said that the players taught the world a lesson with their attitude after Luis Rubiales’ forced kiss on Jenni Hermoso and the refusal of the president of the Spanish Federation to resign. The information is from the AFP agency.

“Our players have won twice: once on the pitch and once giving a lesson to the world about equality between men and women,” said Sánchez during a speech in Malaga.

He praised the decision of the 23 world champions not to wear the national team shirt again if there are no changes in the direction of the Royal Spanish Football Federation.

After the women’s World Cup final, the president of the Spanish Federation forcefully kissed Jenni Hermoso during the medal ceremony. The act provoked international surprise and outrage.

“Spain is a feminist country,” said Sánchez. He cited “women who decided not to submit again, never again”, in allusion to the slogan shouted at demonstrations in support of Jenni.

Asked whether Rubiales’ stance would have damaged Spain’s image abroad, the head of government replied that it had not.

“I believe that the Spain brand is the exemplary reaction of the players of the Spanish national football team and the spectacular reaction of Spanish society, which together with them said ‘it’s over’. That ‘it’s over’ has all the consequences, including for the directors” .

A few hours after her speech at an assembly of the RFEF, in which Luis Rubiales said he would not resign and said that the kiss had been consented to, the 23 world champions, alongside dozens of players, released a statement in which they informed that would refuse to return to the selection without changes in the direction of the entity.

FIFA, which opened disciplinary proceedings against Rubiales, suspended the manager for three months the day after the assembly. In Spain, the Administrative Court of Sport also opened a case against him.