Katie McCabe calls for equal pay for managers within associations

Katie McCabe during a Republic of Ireland women training session at Tallaght Stadium.

Ireland captain Katie McCabe has added her voice to calls for equal pay extending to managers within associations.

McCabe brokered a deal with the FAI and men’s captain Séamus Coleman in 2021 which resulted in pay parity across the squads. Match fees for senior female players trebled from their measly previous amount of €500.

Norway were the first nation to strike equality and, since Ireland mirrored them, others such as USA and Australia have thrashed out similar local agreements.

Only the Americans, however, have seriously contemplated synchronising the pay of their senior team managers.

Emma Hayes was persuaded to leave behind the Chelsea team she has led to three WSL titles on the spin to move stateside and take over the USA this summer.

Although the task of rebuilding the squad into one capable of reestablishing the World Cup winners’ status is huge, the sizeable pay increase cannot be underestimated either.

She’s believed to have been promised linkage to the salary of men’s team boss Gregg Berhalter, estimated at $1.6m (£1.3m), more than double she's grossing at the Blues.

English FA chief Mark Bullingham ruled out replicating that concept, albeit they rewarded Sarina Wiegman’s feats of European success and World Cup runner-up with a meaty spike to around £800,000. Her male equivalent Gareth Southgate pockets £4m by comparison.

Disparities of that order exist across the game, including the FAI.

In December, they handed caretaker boss Eileen Gleeson the job on a permanent basis, with the cushion of a fallback to his former job as head of women’s and girls’ football. Her salary will be dwarfed by what the new men’s manager banks once he’s sourced and appointed.

McCabe, who regularly deputises as skipper of Arsenal when Kim Little or Leah Williamson aren’t playing, chose her words carefully when asked about the proposition yesterday but wasn’t against the idea in the spirit of progress.

“We want parity across the board, of course,” she said, doing her best to generalise at the press conference for tonight’s friendly against Wales.

“I want female journalists getting the same as male journalists. Of course, we strive for parity. In a perfect world everyone would be happy and it would be great.

“I’m a footballer. I concentrate on football so it’s not up to me but of course I’d like parity across the game.” This will be the final fixture before Ireland discover their opponents from next Tuesday’s European Championship qualification draw.

Six successive wins in a handy Nations League campaign after Vera Pauw was ousted as boss created the dual impact of promotion to the top tier of nations for this draw in Nyon and sealing the vacancy for Gleeson.

In a new format, the weighting is tilted heavily in favour of the 16 teams occupying League A.

Ireland will get two stabs at reaching their first-ever Euros, to be hosted by Switzerland in the summer of 2025, either by securing a top-two finish or through the backdoor of playoffs.

The bad news is they could land a daunting draw. Such is the calibre of opponent inhabiting the stage that they’ll be guaranteed one of Spain, Germany, Netherlands or France. They’re the Pot 1 gallery, with England the team to avoid in Pot 2.

“We could get England – or Spain, France, them all,” said the Ireland skipper, eager to avoid the Auld Enemy rivalry talk.

“I’m not fixated on any teams in particular, only focused on us. It will be interesting who we get but there won’t be any England against Ireland narrative there.” Based on Gleeson’s line-up in Florence last Friday – when she reverted to a flat back-four in the scoreless draw against Italy – McCabe will start the campaign in April at left-back.

Pauw’s decision to station her in that defensive role drew criticism, leading to a degree of freedom being trumpeted when she was pushed forward upfield alongside Denise O’Sullivan for the 4-0 away win in Hungary last September.

Injury has kept Corkwoman O’Sullivan out of this window but McCabe has no issue with her duties.

Meanwhile, Wales have appointed former Canada defender Rhian Wilkinson as their new manager on a three-year deal. She will be in Dublin for tonight’s fixture and will then take charge for the first time during the April international window.