Updated guidance to help players and club staff better manage pregnancy has been issued by FIFPRO.
The Postpartum Return to Play Guide, which has 48 pages, was developed by a team of actresses who have been pregnant and given birth while working, including Sara Bjork Gunnarsdottir, Crystal Dunn, Cheyna Matthews and Almuth Schult.
“For such diverse and complex issues, there is very little guidance available for players to follow – an issue we hope this guide can begin to resolve,” said Dr Alex Culvin, FIFPRO’s director of policy and strategic relations for women’s football.
“For many professional players, their prime playing years will be well beyond their peak reproductive window. As a result, players will continue to want to start a family while playing and want to return to their careers.”
The FIFA Maternity Rules, introduced in January 2021 after pressure from FIFPRO, were in place to protect the rights of players who become pregnant while playing.
The new guide was created after FIFPRO realized there was a lack of advice and information readily available in professional football.
Speaking about the impact of the new advice, Gunnarsdottir said: “These guidelines are very important to try to reduce the pressure on the players. If I put myself in the player’s place right now after the release of this guide, I would feel more comfortable. , more confident that I will get pregnant or want to get pregnant.”
The news comes after AC Milan put the welfare of new mothers at the top of their priority list earlier this month, becoming the first club in Europe to guarantee the renewal of contracts for players who become pregnant in the final year of their contracts, helping with childcare and expenses.
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