Reported by players of the Brazilian National Team, the structural problems of the Copa America held in Quito, Ecuador, are not exclusive to the competition that moves to the semifinals dispute starting on Monday (28). Lack of professionalization, national leagues with few teams and, in some cases, semi -markers reflect the neglect of women’s football in all parts of the continent.
Host of the tenth dispute between South American teams, Ecuador only had a National League for Women in 2019, when Conmebol (South American Football Confederation) required that all clubs competing for the Libertadores Cup and the South American Cup have an adult and one-base women, enrolled in at least one official tournament.
Prior to that, the modality in the country was essentially amateur, with some university and regional competitions. In 2013, the Ecuadorian Football Federation organized the first National Women’s Football Championship, but the project did not advance. Without a direct connection with traditional men’s soccer groups, the entity had difficulty attracting sponsors.
Even with the launch of the women’s Superleague in 2019, the challenges persist. In the first three seasons, most games did not have any transmission, not even over the internet. Media invisibility removed investments and limited professionalization. The number of clubs also fell: from 22 in 2019 to 12 in 2025. Only the champion qualifies for Libertadores.
This reality is repeated in other countries, as the study “Nosotras Jugamos” showed, conducted between November 2022 and October 2023 by Fifpro (the global union of players), Anjuff (the National Association of Chilers) and the University of Chile. The survey was made from interviews with 1,171 players from the first division of Argentina, Chile, Colombia, Paraguay, Peru, Uruguay, Venezuela and Ecuador.
According to the researchers, only 24% of the players of the mentioned countries are dedicated exclusively to football – too much have a second economic activity. Just over half, 54%, has informal ties with their clubs (verbal agreements or only federations registration). Five out of ten, or 49%, receive up to one minimum wage of the country where they operate or less. And 27% do not receive any fixed remuneration.
Also according to the study, only 33% train in fields with all appropriate conditions, 25% do not have access to hot water showers in changing rooms, 21% do not have health plan, and 27% paid full or partially caused costs caused by injury.
According to the researchers, 73% of athletes reported having suffered some kind of sexual harassment during their careers, 42% fear being harassed, 85% reported having undergone some kind of gender discrimination and 42% observed prejudice by social class, ethnicity or sexual orientation.
“This is why we ask for the creation of minimum conditions of conditions for both international competitions and local tournaments to make them more attractive, attract the private sector and generate a virtuous circle of professionalism,” said Camila García, FIFPro vice president and director of Anjuff.
Two years after the study, the Copa America 2025 wide the same problems. The main focus of criticism has been the Gonzalo Pozal Ripalda Stadium, which concentrated nine of the ten Grupo B games. With the worn lawn, Conmebol banned heating in the field, forcing teams to improvise spaces on tight, unleashed and occupied two delegations.
“I had not played a championship here in South America for a long time. We were saddened by these situations. They charge athletes’ performance and a high level of work, but we also have to charge a high level of organization,” Marta complained.
After the repercussion, Conmebol adjusted the protocol: from the third round, all teams had 15 minutes of heating on the lawn. The measure corrected part of the problem, but not the whole. With tickets from US $ 3 (R $ 16.76), the average audience is below 300 fans. The award also did not evolve: US $ 1.5 million (R $ 8.3 million) to the champion, the same amount paid in 2022. VAR (video referee) will only be used in the final phase.
The semifinals will start on Monday (28), with the duel between Argentina and Colombia. In the other key, Brazil will face Uruguay on Tuesday (29).
The knockout matches will be played at Rodrigo Paz Delgado Stadium, also known as Casa Blanca, with a capacity of 41,575 people. Inaugurated in 1997, Casa da LDU offers better conditions for athletes in relation to the stage used in the first phase.
