Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, if she will make an assessment of the potential impact of the disparities in (a) pay and (b) prize money on the future development of (i) men’s and (ii) women’s football.

The Government is fully committed to supporting and growing women’s sport and ensuring that women’s sport is on an equal footing with men’s sport.

The ambition of equal prize money where possible across sport is absolutely the right one. The FA took steps last season to increase the total prize fund for the Women’s FA Cup, however we recognise there is more to do. We will continue to keep this under review.

In 2023, Karen Carney OBE published a Review of Women’s Football which set out a route to raise minimum standards and deliver bold and sustainable growth at elite and grassroots level. The review made a series of recommendations for key stakeholders to take forward. I recently convened stakeholders to discuss updates on progress and will convene further meetings in 2025 to drive action.