AFLW players will see a 29% increase in their salary effective immediately, following the first joint collective bargaining agreement including both men’s and women’s players being agreed upon by the association.
The $2.2bn deal has been described as “transformative” by the AFL Players Association chief executive, Paul Marsh, and that it “ provided an opportunity for the AFL industry to significantly advance the AFLW competition.”
It also means that the average wage of AFLW players will rise from $46,000 to $82,000 by the end of 2027, equating to a jump from €27,733 to €49,436 with euro conversion.
We're proud to announce a groundbreaking joint Collective Bargaining Agreement for AFL and AFLW players 🤝 pic.twitter.com/TuVkZVWYyB
— aflplayers (@AFLPlayers) September 21, 2023
This sentiment further extended to the contract situations of AFLW players.
The amount of games they will play per season will extend from 10 to 12 matches in 2025, and they can now be awarded 12-month contracts which will afford clubs to sign multi year deals. Moreover, a 12-month pregnancy policy comes into immediate effect, starting six weeks before a player is due to give birth.
All of these measures point towards greater job security for AFLW players, including the 33 Irish players who are currently involved with the league Down Under, although it is still a ways off gender parity.
For example, the average men’s AFL player’s salary currently sits at $387,000, or €234,057, but is projected to rise to $519,000, or €313,890, by the agreement’s conclusion.
Speaking on the deal AFL chief executive, Gillon McLachlan described how the “new CBA provides certainty to the players for both competitions.”
“Our AFLW players receive another immediate boost after an historic 94% increase last season” she says.
“And the opportunity is ahead of the competition to continue to grow in length if we can reach some key support metrics that have been achieved before.
“Together we will focus on expanding crowds and TV audience for the women’s competition while working to engage more women and girls to take up football.”
Check out the AFLW IRISH PLAYER OF THE YEAR OVERALL LEADERBOARD after Round 3🏆
Orla O’Dwyer☘️ & Sarah Rowe☘️ are currently tied for Overall Leader
1. Orla O’Dwyer
2. Sarah Rowe
3. Niamh Kelly
4. Aisling McCarthy
5. Áine Tighe
6. Aishling Sheridan
7. Blaithin Mackin pic.twitter.com/Jvol29bokv— AFLW Ireland (@aflw_ireland) September 21, 2023
