It's a "slap in the face"

The FIFA Women's World Cup will kick off in Oz this Summer with the Republic of Ireland meeting hosts Australia in Sydney on July 20th. The tournament has been in headlines this week following claims made by FIFA President Gianni Infantino. Speaking at the World Trade Organisation in Geneva on Monday, he hinted that several countries may be blocked from watching the Women's World Cup this year. He described offers made by Spain, Germany, France, Italy, Britain as a "slap in the face" and is calling for a "fair price" for the media rights to air games. The governing body revealed that the offers are between $1 million and $10 million to broadcast the Women's World Cup. This equates to €910,000 - €1.9 million. Just for comparison, countries pay between $100-200 million for the men’s tournament. Again, that's €91 million - €182 million. It's said that some countries are hesitant to pay higher prices because of the match times. The games will take place in Australia and so the time difference is significant but Infantino said it's no excuse.

"Women deserve it. Simple as that."

At the conference, he said: "Maybe, because it is in Australia and New Zealand, it’s not played on prime time in Europe. But still, it is played at 9:00 am or 10:00 am, so it is quite a reasonable time." He continued to back the women's sport and is clearly passionate about not underselling the media rights. Infantino said: "To be very clear, it is our moral and legal obligation not to undersell the FIFA Women’s World Cup. "Therefore, should the offers continue not to be fair, we will be forced not to broadcast the FIFA Women’s World Cup into the ‘big five’ European countries. "Public broadcasters in particular have a duty to promote and invest in women’s sport. Women deserve it. Simple as that." This is the first time in history that the Republic of Ireland Women's team has qualified for the World Cup which is absolutely incredible. Vera Pauw's side will kick off the tournament on July 20th against Australia. Next they'll meet Canada on July 26th and then Nigeria on July 31st. Also announced during the week was new that the Women's World Cup Trophy will come to Dublin as part of its global tour. Each of the 32 participating nations will get to display the cup but it'll be at The Mansion House, Dublin from 3-6pm next week Wednesday May 10th. This public viewing, will offer fans the opportunity to experience the most desired prize in women’s football.

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