Leading Jamaica players, including the Manchester City forward Khadija Shaw, have expressed their “utmost disappointment” at “subpar” support from the Jamaican Football Federation (JFF) before the Women’s World Cup.
The players said their focus had been hindered by a number issues such as inadequate planning and access to proper resources in the buildup to the tournament, which kicks off on 20 July in Australia and New Zealand.
“Qualifying for a second World Cup is something most never imagined or thought possible for the Reggae Girlz,” the players wrote in an open letter posted on social media. “At a time where we should be focused solely on preparing to compete on the world’s largest stage, we are unfortunately compelled to express our utmost disappointment with the Jamaica Football Federation.
“On multiple occasions, we have sat down with the federation to respectfully address concerns resulting from subpar planning, transportation, accommodations, training conditions, compensation, communication, nutrition, and accessibility to proper resources. We have also showed up repeatedly without receiving contractually agreed upon compensation.”
The players said they had missed friendly matches because of “extreme disorganisation” and called for “immediate and systematic change” from the JFF.
Reuters has contacted the JFF for a comment. The federation announced a sponsorship deal for the women’s team with a fast food chain on Thursday and the governing body’s president, Michael Ricketts, told Nationwide News Network it was taking the players’ concerns seriously. “We want to make sure we provide as much as we can for the girls, who we certainly think will do very well at the World Cup,” he said.
Earlier this year Ricketts said the JFF was struggling to find the money to fund the World Cup campaign. The Chicago Red Stars forward Cheyna Matthews said the mother of one of her club-mates had started a crowdfunding campaign to raise $100,000 for the Jamaica squad.
Each player at the Women’s World Cup will be guaranteed at least $30,000 after Fifa this month announced some of the prize money would be disbursed to individuals rather than national federations.
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Jamaica, who lost all three games at their first World Cup four years ago, begin their 2023 campaign on 23 July against France in Sydney.