The World Players Association (WPA) today announced the release of its Best Practice Guidance for Maternity and Parental Policies in Sport, a landmark initiative designed to ensure athlete-parents are empowered to thrive both on and off the field.
As women’s participation in professional sport continues to grow, gender equity remains an aspirational goal rather than a reality. Athletes around the world continue to face outdated structures, poor protections, and systemic barriers to balancing careers and family life. Despite FIFA’s 2021 introduction of minimum maternity standards, few other international sport governing bodies have followed suit.
In response, World Players has developed this comprehensive, player-centred framework aimed at embedding strong maternity and parental protections across all sports.
The Best Practice Guidance is structured around five core pillars: Pregnancy and Prenatal Support, Parental Leave, Return to Play, Childcare Support, and Women’s Health. Drawing from international labour standards, pioneering policies, and collective bargaining agreements, the guidance offers flexible, practical solutions adaptable across sporting and regional contexts.
“Professional athletes should not have to choose between a career in sport and parenthood,” said Steph Bond, Legal and Policy Manager of the World Cricketers’ Association and CEO of the New Zealand Netball Players Association. “Regardless of sport, location, or gender, all players deserve strong protections and supportive environments to enable athletes to optimize their sporting career while having a family. While this support benefits the individual athlete, it is also proven that motherhood in a team environment has a positive impact on the team itself.”
Terri Jackson, CEO of the Women’s National Basketball Players Association (WNBPA), said, “Peak performance and parenthood should not be mutually exclusive for professional athletes. Strong protections allow athletes to balance their careers and family lives — benefitting players, teams and the sporting community.”
This guidance builds on ongoing work by World Players and its affiliates in women’s sport through the WPA Roar Room for Gender Equity in Sport, inaugurated in late 2022.
“The Roar Room has demonstrated just how critical collective action and knowledge-sharing are to building a better, fairer future for athletes – especially as women’s sport transitions rapidly toward full professionalism,” said Dr Gabriela Garton, a player relations coordinator at World Players Association and former Argentinian international footballer. “Our new Best Practice Guidance is another step in that journey, giving players and their associations the tools to demand better conditions and drive real change.”
By championing robust maternity and parental policies, World Players and its affiliates are helping create a version of sport that values players as both athletes and people.
Julia Chiera, Head of AFLW at the AFL Players’ Association said, “The AFL Players’ Association is thrilled to support the launch of the World Players Association Best Practice Guidance for Maternity/Parental Policies in Sport, which reflects the values and protections we continue to fight for on behalf of AFLW players. No athlete should be forced to choose between their career and starting a family, and this guidance provides a holistic framework to ensure that parenthood is supported – not penalized – in elite sport.”
Through this new Best Practice Guidance, the World Players Association calls on all player associations, clubs, leagues, and governing bodies to act decisively – not only to meet international standards but to lead the way among industries for parental protections and support.
To access the full Best Practice Guidance for Maternity and Parental Policies in Sport, click here.