Spain to cover egg freezing costs of female footballers, referees

The Royal Spanish Football Federation has introduced a fertility support programme for female footballers and referees, allowing eligible athletes to access treatments including in-vitro fertilisation and egg freezing.

According to Reuters, the federation announced the initiative on Tuesday following an agreement with Tambre clinic, describing it as a pioneering move aimed at giving women in elite football more flexibility over when they choose to become mothers.

Spain internationals Olga Carmona and Patri Guijarro attended the announcement and welcomed the initiative.

“We are ​very happy to have reached this agreement, to have one more option to decide how and when to ⁠choose to become a mother,” Carmona said.

Guijarro said the programme was part of wider efforts to improve the balance between professional careers and motherhood.

“Ultimately, it’s a very positive agreement because it’s true that for ​all these years we’ve been fighting to achieve a better work-life balance for mothers,” Guijarro said.

According to the RFEF’s director of women’s football, Reyes Bellver Alonso, the federation will cover the full cost of egg-freezing treatment for all international players who have been called up at least twice.

The agreement with Tambre will remain in place until 2029, with other benefits available depending on the treatment accessed.

Bellver Alonso said the initiative was not intended to discourage players from having children while they were still competing.

Rather, she said, it was designed to provide another option for athletes who might otherwise feel compelled to postpone motherhood because of their sporting careers.

The RFEF also pointed to existing measures designed to support footballers who become mothers, including provisions allowing players to have their children nearby during away trips, training camps and tournaments.

However, Reuters reports that the announcement has sparked criticism from some labour and equality groups in Spain, who argued that fertility treatment should not take the place of stronger workplace protections for pregnant athletes and mothers.