The African National Congress (ANC) has called on the South African Football Association (SAFA) and all sports federations to help champion the struggle for gender equality in sports.
This comes after WAFCON champions Banyana Banyana boycotted a warm-up match against Botswana, citing poor conditions of the pitch, quality of the opposition, and concerns about injuries ahead of the FIFA Women's World Cup.
According to reports, Banyana refused to play their send-off match owing to a dispute over payments they are supposed to receive for their participation in the upcoming Women’s World Cup in Australia and New Zealand.
Their gripe was also that each player would receive over R500 000 from FIFA and nothing from SAFA.
It is also alleged that the team did not sign the pre-tournament contract, requesting an additional fee of up to R400 000 per player.
The ANC said this “unnecessary stand-off” was a disappointing distraction as Banyana prepared to take on the world.
“The events that unfolded on Sunday were both disappointing and unfortunate. Banyana Banyana is the pride of our nation and the best-performing national team at the moment,” it said.
It said the team deserved to be rewarded accordingly given their outstanding performance and track record on the field of play has captured the imagination of our nation.
“The gender pay wage gap in any sector does not accord with non-sexism, a principle enshrined in the country's constitution,” it highlighted.
Furthermore, the ANC applauded Minister of Sports, Zizi Kodwa’s intervention and hoped that his mediation efforts will resolve the impasse and ensure that the two parties find one another in the interest of the country.
“We wish Banyana Banyana the best and hope that they will, once again, fly the South African flag high during the FIFA Women’s World Cup in New Zealand and Australia,” the party said in a statement.
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