After the German success at the European Championship, which ended in silver in England, the demands for higher wages in women’s football in Germany have increased. Chancellor Olaf Scholz has made his views clear.
— My position is clear. We have talked about how we can continue to help more girls and women become interested in football. Wages are obviously a big part of this, he says after a meeting with the German Football Association.
Scholz wants to see equal wages for both sexes.
— This is why it is wise to discuss equal pay. I have made the suggestion and am very grateful that there is a willingness to discuss this matter.
During the final between England and Germany, Scholz expressed his support for the German women’s national team’s fight for higher wages.
“It’s 2022, and women and men should be paid equally. This also applies in the world of sports, especially for the national teams,” he wrote on Twitter.
Had the German women’s national team won the tournament, they would have received a bonus of roughly 620,000 kroner each. If the men’s national team had won the EC last year, the players would have been rewarded with over 4 million kroner per head.
Confederation captain Martina Voss-Tecklenburg has proposed paying female players more, and male players less, to reduce the pay gap.