– I am not perfect, far from it. But I can no longer support the current system, which is miles away from delivering what is required at the highest level. It is sad, but necessary, writes Wendie Renard on social media. She has long been France’s national football team captain, but now she is resigning in protest. After 142 international matches, she has had enough. – At first I thought: “Shit, this is big”. EXPERT: Mia Eriksson. Photo: Privat This is how Mia Eriksson describes how she reacted to the news. The Swedish TV 4 journalist runs a podcast about international women’s football, and she follows the news and developments closely. – So there is a champion league winner who has played for the absolute best club team, perhaps in the world, for many years thanks, who is now saying no thanks to a national team in fifth place in the world, she says of Renard’s shock announcement. Large protests in several countries But Renard is not alone in leaving his own national team. Several major nations are experiencing player flight and protests ahead of this summer’s women’s soccer World Cup. In Spain, 15 stars have withdrawn. In Canada, the players threatened to strike. And Renard’s national team ban has already prompted several French players to follow suit. Reason? Lack of equality and professional arrangement. – We are finally at the point where elite female athletes, in this case footballers, see their own value, says Eriksson. She explains that the contrast between the players’ professional club day-to-day life and what they encounter in the national team is so great that the players demand changes within their own federations. Gets Hegerberg support French Renard’s settlement with the association reminds of the fight Ada Hegerberg took with the Norwegian Football Association in 2017. At the time, the star striker called for higher professionalism in all aspects of the women’s national team. Hegerberg, who is teammates with Renard at Lyon, has taken to Twitter to declare her support for the choice the French captain has now made. – How long do we have to go to such lengths to be respected? I’m with you, Wendie, and anyone else going through the same thing. It is time for action, writes Hegerberg. Eriksson pays tribute to Hegerberg in light of what is currently happening in international women’s football. The Norwegian striker took the match alone against his own association. In Spain, Canada and partly in France, the stars are gathered. – I hope that the younger generation in Norway will remember the name Ada Hegerberg for many years to come. She wants to be and already IS the reason that “the next generation” in Norway will have completely different conditions (better) than what she herself had, believes the Swedish expert. TEAM FRIENDS: Ada Hegerberg and Wendie Renard in Lyon. Photo: STEPHANE MAHE / Reuters – A difficult situation Gerd Stolsmo, Hegerberg’s mother and manager, was close when her daughter was left out of the national team. She is clear that no one makes such a decision overnight. – When someone quits the way Wendie Renard is doing now, it is based on something that has built up over years, and which pushes forward the decision, she says to news. FOOTBALL MOTHER: Gerd Hegerberg, together with footballer daughters Ada and Andrine. Photo: Berit Roald / NTB In the ongoing matches, several players stand together against the federations, while for Hegerberg the battle was a little more lonely when she joined the national team in 2017. – The players are always put in a difficult situation. It is obviously worst for those who take the fight early, and who have to bear the consequences themselves. But it is also difficult for those who want change, but don’t dare for reasons of their own career or for other reasons, says Gerd Stolsmo. – No individual is above the national team Not long after Renard published his post, several teammates followed suit. Kadidiatou Diani and Marie Antoinette Katoto also have no plans to represent France in this summer’s championship. – I am putting my obligations to the national team on hold to focus on my club career. If the necessary changes are introduced, I will return, says Diani. In a response, the French Football Federation said it would discuss the statements made by the players during a board meeting on February 28. At the same time, they hit back at the trio: – The French federation reminds that no individual is above the national team, it says further.
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National team boycott and mood of rebellion in international football: – Shit, this is big
