How much are women footballers paid compared to men? Average salary confirmed

The roar of 90,000 fans at Wembley and a TV audience of more than 10 million tuning in to watch England's European Championship triumph last summer was a moment that inspired a whole generation of female footballers. Now, as the Lionesses prepare to kick off their Women’s World Cup campaign in Australia and New Zealand, the women's game has broken into the mainstream like never before.

This begs the question: just how much do the top players actually get paid? Unfortunately, the disparity between male and female wages is still a large one.

The Women's Super League, English football's top domestic competition, is one of the world's most competitive divisions and features an abundance of talent from Chelsea's Sam Kerr to Arsenal's Vivianne Miedema. However, salaries in the league can be as low as £20,000 per year in some instances, with the average WSL yearly salary said to be £47,000 according to BBC research.

Combined with a lack of opportunities, the low starting wage has led to some players being reportedly "priced out" of playing professional football.

READ MORE: Women's World Cup 2023 prize money: How much Lionesses could earn

SportBible (via football.london) reports ex-USA star Carli Lloyd earned more than £432,000 per year before retiring in 2021, with Australia and Chelsea star Sam Kerr now said to be the top earner in the women's game, earning more than £400,000 a year. When comparing the gulf with men's footballers, the gulf is an astonishing one.

Gareth Bale was reportedly paid up to £600,000 a week while at Real Madrid, triple the amount England star Lucy Bronze was estimated to make per year. The highest-paid male footballer according to Forbes last year was Lionel Messi, earning £62million per year