Players in women’s domestic cricket competitions will soon earn $163,000 on average in Australia, as the sport’s governing body announces a new action plan to grow the game.
Cricket Australia plans to boost the total revenue from women’s cricket to $121 million over the next 10 years, an increase of $100 million.
As part of the action plan, the WBBL will have a 40-game regular season, bringing it into line with the men’s competition, while a new domestic women’s T20 competition will be introduced. The new competition will see the average domestic salary for women increase to $163,322, an increase of 8 per cent on 2023-24.
Cricket Austrlia has also set goals to reach 600,000 average annual attendance for women’s cricket, and increase grassroots participation for girls from 25,000 to 100,000. There will also be $500,000 invested in infrastructure for women and girls over the next 10 years.
In terms of management, Cricket Australia wants to achieve 40 per cent female representation across executives, boards and community cricket roles.
It also wants the Australian Women’s Cricket Team to win gold medals at the 2028 and 2032 Olympics.
Nick Hockley, CEO of Cricket Australia, said there is a lot of work to be done to ensure all facets of the game are gender balanced.
“We’ve seen what is possible with transformative moments such as 86,174 fans packing the MCG for the T20 World Cup final, which remains the highest attendance for a female sporting event in Australia,” Hockley said.
“There is so much more opportunity and work to be done to ensure big crowds in big stadiums more often, that our incredible role models are given the profile they deserve, that all facets of the game are gender balanced, that through imaginative partnerships we drive commercial growth, sustainable investment and ultimately that more women and girls are inspired to love and play cricket.”
Australian player Ellyse Perry said it was she happy to have collaborated with management on the 10-year plan, noting how important the commerical growth of the game is.
“Australian Cricket has been at the forefront of the growth in women’s sport providing some of the best opportunities for players with resourcing and remuneration and it’s reassuring to know this commitment will not only be sustained, but greatly enhanced over the next ten years,” Perry said.
“With viewing audiences increasing, the public appetite for women’s sport is now indisputable and we would love to see major stadiums filled with fans for our international and WBBL games and more girls inspired to play cricket.
“It is also extremely important that the increased interest in women’s sport is reflected in sponsorship and broadcast deals, and I hope this plan will continue to drive this growth so that women’s cricket continues to thrive.”
Image: Cricket Australia.