Women’s clubs urge fair framework, denounce absence of collective agreement | OneFootball

Captains of the 24 women’s teams in France’s First and Second Leagues have called for a fair framework to govern the professional game, warning that a collective agreement remains absent. In a column published on Tuesday in L’Équipe, they set out their case.

Their intervention highlights what they see as fragility in the sport’s structure, arriving as Dijon, fifth in the First League, considers ending the professional status of its women’s team to cut costs. Similar decisions have already been taken at Soyaux and Bordeaux.

The captains argue that such episodes are not accidents, saying women’s sections in French professional clubs too often become the first area for cutbacks. They describe a structural precarity rooted in the lack of a collective agreement.

They acknowledge progress in recent years, yet ask that the process be accelerated, pointing to quicker timelines in the men’s game.

A framework for a collective agreement for the future Ligue 3 was reached within months, they note, while talks for the women’s game have dragged on for more than three years. They are seeking the agreement to be signed before the start of next season.

Source: Le Progres