Female and wheelchair athletes at the 2021 Rugby League World Cup will receive equal payment and prize money for the first time after organisers announced sweeping changes to the tournament.
Payments to female and wheelchair athletes will match that of the male competitors, which will also be boosted by 125 per cent, while training facilities and accommodations will also be on par for the first time.
Organisers for the tournament, which will be held in England, have announced they will be revising minimum wages and standards across all areas including player welfare, codes of conduct and commercial fulfilments.
The announcement comes after players at the World Cup Nines received equal match payments, regardless of gender or nation.
The changes aim to rectify the pay disparity that was seen throughout the 2017 RLWC, where Australia’s men’s team received a fee of $50,000, compared to Tongan players, who were given just $500.
Jon Dutton, CEO of the 2021 RLWC described the move as ‘groundbreaking’ for international rugby league and the standard of the competition moving into the future.
“Our board have worked hard with colleagues at the IRL and the Rugby League Players Association (RLPA) to secure this positive and ground-breaking decision and we’re delighted with the outcome,” he said in a statement.
“One of our core values as a tournament is inclusivity and we believe that our revised agreements showcase our determination to ensure we celebrate this in 2021.”
Prize money for the men’s, women’s and wheelchair tournaments will be proportionate according to the number of players in each team and the amount of games they are required to play, while nations are able to give bonuses to their players above the minimum requirement.