FIFA on maternity leave
Football club has to pay back wages
01/18/2023, 1:05 p.m
Soccer player Sara Björk Gunnarsdóttir is still entitled to a salary of more than 80,000 euros. Champions League record winners Olympique Lyon did not pay her during her pregnancy. The decision of the FIFA court is groundbreaking for all players.
The French football club Olympique Lyon has to pay the Icelandic record player Sara Björk Gunnarsdóttir more than 80,000 euros in wages that were not paid during her pregnancy. This was decided by the tribunal of the World Football Association, according to a FIFA statement.
“This story is bigger than me,” Gunnarsdóttir wrote on social media after the decision was announced. “This is a wake-up call for all clubs and a message to all players that they have rights and guarantees if they are pregnant or intend to become pregnant during their career.” Gunnarsdóttir moved from VfL Wolfsburg to Lyon in 2020 and had been under contract there for two years. Last summer she moved to Juventus Turin.
According to FIFA, Lyon has to pay 82,094.82 euros – plus five percent interest. Olympique has 21 days before the Court of Arbitration for Sport against the verdict. On 35 pages, FIFA provides information about the events and also about the content of the Icelander’s contract. Affected are payments that were not made before her maternity leave after the pregnancy became known in March 2021.
Gunnarsdóttir took a break from the end of April 2021 to mid-March 2022, and her son Ragnar Frank Árnason was born on November 16, 2021. On March 18, she played her first game after giving birth, and in May she won the Champions League with Lyon. She then took part in the European Championships with Iceland.
“I have to tell the truth”
“I know this story could upset some powerful people in the football world. They shouldn’t be talking about that side of the game,” she said in a publication “The Players Tribune”. “But I have to tell the truth.” She explained: “This is about my rights as an employee, as a woman, as a person,” said Gunnarsdóttir. “I want to make sure nobody ever has to go through what I went through again. And I want Lyon to know that it’s not okay.”
Olympique Lyon is one of the best clubs in women’s football. The French are record winners of the Champions League, the reigning title holders have won the premier class eight times since it was introduced in the 2009/10 season. With Sara Däbritz and Dzsenifer Marozsan, two Germans are currently playing in Lyon.
Gunnarsdottir received a lot of encouragement from fellow players for her fight. Former German international Fatmire Alushi, who ended her career when her first pregnancy became known, sent two clapping hands as a comment. The Swedes Nilla Fischer and Fridolina Rolfö and many other national players from Europe and the USA also sent approving emojis. Pernille Harder captioned two heart emojis: “NO ONE should go through this. Good fight my friend!”
“You did it!” commented players’ union Fifpro. In her own post, she congratulated Gunnarsdóttir on her success. It is extremely important for female footballers and women’s football that the mandatory maternity protection rules introduced by FIFA in January 2021 are also observed. “The landmark ruling sends a clear message to clubs and women footballers worldwide: the strict application of maternity law is enforceable.”