Banyana players welcome Fifa move to pay World Cup appearance fees

Banyana Banyana stars Noko Matlou and Kaylin Swart have welcomed the move by Fifa to pay players appearance fees for the 2023 Women’s World Cup in New Zealand and Australia. 

Banyana players who make the final squad for next month's tournament will each receive R572,000 and about R1.1m if they progress to the last-16 round. 

Banyana are drawn in Group G with Sweden, Italy and Argentina, and aim to do better than they did in the previous World Cup in France, where they lost their three matches. 

“In our country we are trying to close the gap financially. It will take a lot of progress ... to get to where we should be, but this is a great step forward from Fifa,” said experienced goalkeeper Swart. 

“It is about time we are seen equally when it comes to finances. It is awesome and everyone is excited. Going to the World Cup is a huge achievement for anyone and for Fifa to reward us like is even better. 

“Just getting into the plane is exciting and this will serve as extra motivation for the ladies. As years go by, things will be better because we have all seen the growth of women’s football in the world. It is a great step in the right direction.” 

Swart was supported by defender Matlou of Spanish Primera Federación side SD Eibar, who said the financial injection will help the players. 

“We only just saw the news in the media and we will know what is happening once the association (Safa) has dealt with it. It will mean a lot, it will change the lives of players because we play football to make a living.

“So this move is going to be important for the players and it makes qualification for the World Cup even more important. There will also be more competition. You can see already on our continent that there are no longer so-called teams because anyone can qualify for big tournaments.”