The revolt of the French side’s leaders, led by their captain Wendie Renard, to secure the departure of their coach Corinne Deacon on Thursday is just the latest wave of a much more global movement.

Indeed, in recent months, Canada internationals have come out on top, threatening their federation with a strike if they fail to secure an increase in the budgets allocated to their squads.

And since the end of September, around fifteen Spaniards have withdrawn from the national team and demanded the departure of their coach, Jorge Vilda… For the time being without success.

“Whether it’s the financial requirements, the technical environment, the lack of professional structures in their associations or leagues, none of this corresponds to what the players demand or achieve on the pitch, nor to the growth of their sport,” alarmed Jonas Baer-Hoffmann , the Secretary General of the World Federation of Players (Fifpro).

“No player should sacrifice part of their career to get what they want,” the leader told AFP.

A world without multiple stars?

French, Canadian and Spanish women are not the first to bang their fists on the table to demand more consideration. The first female Ballon d’Or in history, Norway’s Ada Hegerberg, had withdrawn from selection for five years after a disappointing Euro 2017, also citing the disparities between women and men in the bonuses paid by the association.

And the much-publicized American team, led by former top scorer Carli Lloyd and more recently Megan Rapinoe and Alex Morgan, had lit the first fuse in 2016 by embarking on a long legal battle for equal pay.

Rapinoe and Morgan were quick to support the French rebels on social media. “You know it’s serious when the captain with the most caps can no longer play for the French FA,” said Alex Morgan shortly after the Lyonnaise’s withdrawal.

The simultaneity of the insurgency movements calls into question four and a half months before a World Cup in Australia and New Zealand from July 20 to August 20. Especially since the broadcasting rights for some large countries such as France and England have not yet been awarded.

The hypothesis of a world championship without a few stars of the discipline “is a real risk,” worried Jonas Baer-Hoffmann. “We hope policymakers don’t feel like a scuffle but see that the protests are part of a deep desire to advance discipline.”

Bis team in Spain

In Canada and France, the rebels were heard: Corinne Deacon was landed on Thursday, while the president of the Canadian association Nick Bontis resigned. This association also announced an agreement in principle on the financing of the women’s national team on Thursday.

But in both cases the revolt did damage. Canadian captain Christine Sinclair told the government on Thursday she was “offended like never before” by ex-President Nick Bontis in his calls for financial equality. Wendie Renard spoke of the consequences for her “mental health”.

For the Spanish team’s rebels, the horizon is even darker: the association has remained inflexible and supported the still-in-charge coach Jorge Vilda. He has called out a second team for every rally since the fall, even when the squad’s top scorer Jenni Hermoso returned in February.

Uncertainty remains around team star Alexia Putellas, who has been injured since last summer. The reigning Double Ballon d’Or was not among the first fifteen rebels, but had backed them. Will she be called up if she comes back from injury?

“It’s a problem that’s becoming more widespread: players don’t have the opportunity to bring out the best in themselves. We have to fight every day to improve things like that,” the Catalan ranted in an interview with beIN Sports this week. “Some selections succeeded (this fight) a while ago, others a little later, but you end up repeating the same question all the time”.