Megan Rapinoe slams 'disgraceful' Lyon for treatment of Sara Björk Gunnarsdóttir | OneFootball

US football star Megan Rapinoe has slammed Lyon after Sara Björk Gunnarsdóttir opened up about her treatment at the club while pregnant with her first child.

It was revealed yesterday that Gunnarsdóttir had been awarded more than £72,000 after she won a claim against former side Lyon for failing to pay her full salary during pregnancy.

The 32-year-old discussed the situation in an article on Player’s Tribune, explaining why she had decided to take the issue to a FIFA tribunal.

“This is not ‘just business’,” Gunnarsdóttir said. “This is about my rights as a worker, as a woman and as a human being.”

“The victory felt bigger than me. It felt like a guarantee of financial security for all players who want to have a child during their career. That it’s not a ‘maybe,’ or an unknown.

“But I want to make sure no one has to go through what I went through ever again.”

What did Megan Rapinoe say about the Gunnarsdóttir’s treatment?

Rapinoe, who played for Lyon in 2013 and 2014, commented on the situation on Twitter.

“This is utterly disgraceful from @OL @OLfeminin,” she wrote. “The culture at OL in France has a LONG way to go.

“Y’all love to talk about how much you support women, but this math is not mathing. I implore you to be the club that is ALWAYS supporting women, not the club that once did.”

What happened to Gunnarsdóttir at Lyon while she was pregnant?

Gunnarsdóttir joined Lyon in 2020, winning two Champions League titles with the side before departing for Juventus in July 2022.

The midfielder fell pregnant in early 2021, and agreed with Lyon that she would return home to Iceland for the final stages of her pregnancy after being told by doctors that she should stop playing football.

According to FIFA rules, in place since January 2021, female players are entitled to a minimum of 14 weeks’ maternity leave at two-thirds of their salary.

But Gunnarsdóttir found that her payments stopped coming through once she returned to Iceland.

“I was entitled to my full salary during my pregnancy and until the start of my maternity leave, according to the mandatory regulations from Fifa,” she said.

“These are part of my rights, and this can’t be disputed, even by a club as big as Lyon.”

Lyon claimed they were following French law, with Gunnarsdóttir recalling telling her agent that this was not the right process. “No that’s not right, they should be going by the FIFA rules,” she said.

Gunnarsdóttir turned to FIFPRO, the organisation which represents professional footballers.

“We are pleased to have assisted her in achieving the first ruling of its kind since Fifa’s maternity regulations came into force in January 2021,” FIFPRO said.

“It is extremely important for women footballers and the women’s game that these mandatory maternity regulations are both implemented and enforced at national level.”

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