Lewes FC women's players call for more equal FA Cup pay
They're in the quarter-final - but have earned just a tenth of what's given to their male counterparts
Players from Lewes FC's women's team are calling on the FA to reduce the gap paid to teams competing in the men's and women's FA Cups.
The Rooks, of the Championship, host Manchester United at the Dripping Pan in the quarter-final of the women's competition on Sunday (March 19th).
It's the first time they've made it that far - but the club has earned just £45,000 throughout their run to the last eight.
That's just a tenth of the £450,000 earned by the Brighton men's team, who face Grimsby at the same stage of their competition on the same day.
In an open letter to Karen Carney, Chair of the Future of Women’s Football Review, Rooks footballers say they are 'no strangers to making history' - after they became the first side to assign equal budgets and wages to their men's and women's teams in 2017.
Drawing inspiration from the Lionesses’, players said that they “have decided to use our progress in this competition as a platform for positive change”, acknowledging Carney’s "power to positively change women’s football for our generation and the next.".
"Every season, female players up and down the football pyramid invest more time and personal resources into football.
"These are the demands of the growing game which are reflected in the constantly improving standard and product of women’s football. We are proud to drive the game forward, but we ask for fair reward.
"#EqualFACup sends a clear signal to society: Female footballers deserve equal recognition and reward.
"Sharing the total combined prize fund equally between men and women has the power to be transformative in the women’s game.
"It would allow clubs to invest more funds in player wages, facilities, equipment, medical care, staffing, travel costs, and everything the women's football pyramid needs to thrive, and grow. Put simply, it will allow us to focus on football."
Lewes FC is urging anyone who supports the #EqualFACup campaign to add their own name to the letter.