Players' unions push World Cup 2026 legacy funds for women's leagues in host nations

Representatives from international players' associations met in New York to propose a legacy levy on commercial revenues from the 2026 men's World Cup, directing a portion toward women's professional leagues and school programmes in the three host countries.

FIFA officials said existing social responsibility programmes already target grassroots development, but declined to commit to new mandatory transfers. National federations in Mexico and Canada highlighted girls' participation growth since the 2015 and 2023 women's tournaments.

Advocates argued that tri-host exposure should not repeat patterns where men's infrastructure upgrades outpace women's pay equity reforms. WOP360 will cover federation votes expected before the end of the year.