Olympic athletes should be paid and heard, says public poll

Jan 23, 2025

UNI World Players, a sector of UNI Global Union, has carried out the first-ever public poll to assess awareness and attitudes regarding athletes’ rights and representation at the Olympic Games. The poll of nearly 3,200 people from Australia, France and the United States was conducted by Ipsos, a leading global market research firm, in the months following the 2024 Paris Olympics. It shows immense public support for greater compensation for Olympic athletes and increased athlete input in decisions affecting their careers.

The poll underscores that IOC’s actions are out of step with public expectations on athlete rights and representation, highlighting the public’s lack of awareness of the challenges Olympic athletes face. As seven candidates battle it out to become the new President of the IOC, to be decided in March this year, UNI World Players is seeking a commitment to fair treatment for athletes and their fair share of the billions of dollars generated at the Games.

Among the poll’s key findings:

Overwhelming support for fair pay for Olympians

• Across the three countries surveyed, half of respondents admitted they “did not know” whether the IOC shares revenue generated at the Games as a form of payment (directly or indirectly) with athletes. Only 18% correctly recognized that the IOC does not.
• A majority (65%) believe the IOC should share Olympic revenue as a form of payment with athletes (either directly or indirectly). Support is highest in Australia (68%), followed by France (67%) and the United States (59%).

Strong backing for greater athlete agency, including sponsorships

• The overwhelming majority of respondents (73%) were unaware that athletes at the Olympics only have a limited say when it comes to matters affecting their careers.
• A majority of over 60% across all three surveyed countries believe athletes should have an equal say with the IOC in decisions that can affect their careers, with the highest support in Australia (71 per cent), followed by the United States (67%) and France (62%).
• There was also support for enhanced sponsorship freedom. When asked their perspective on whether athletes should or should not be allowed to promote personal sponsors when competing at the Olympic Games, the majority of respondents in each country (USA – 59%, Australia – 57% and
  France – 51%) believe athletes should be allowed.

Head of UNI World Players, Matthew Graham said:
This poll shows the public support for change. Without athletes, there are no Olympic
Games, and they deserve to have a stake in the enormous wealth they generate.
The next president must ensure the IOC acknowledges athletes’ hard work and
dedication by paying them their fair share, and giving them an equal say in all
matters affecting their careers, wellbeing and livelihoods.

At the pandemic affected Tokyo Olympics, the IOC produced revenues amounting to US$370,000 for each of the 11,300 competitors, and it is estimated these figures will be higher again in Paris. Yet athletes only directly share in a meagre 0.6% of the revenue they generate via the ‘Olympic Scholarship’ programme. This inequity is forcing many athletes to leave their sports prematurely with significant numbers facing mental health
challenges due to financial difficulties.

UNI World Players notes this polling is another reminder that the IOC needs to fully embed the fundamental rights of athletes in its governance and business model if it is to keep up with the demands and expectations of all stakeholders in the modern professional sport era. To take these steps, the IOC must build meaningful athlete engagement upon a foundation of respect for the rights to organize and collectively bargain, allowing for an equal say on all matters affecting their careers, wellbeing and livelihoods. As proven by other sport globally, says UNI World Players, it will be a win both for athletes and their sports.

Tackling Abuse in Sport in the Right Way: New Guidance On Establishing Effective Safe Sport Entities

Dec 1, 2022

As an affiliate of the World Players Association, EU Athletes supports today’s launch of “Establishing Effective Safe Sport Entities”, a concise guide on the key principles and essential functions of entities established to address and remedy the scourge of abuse in sport. Developed together with The Army of Survivors and the Sport & Rights Alliance, the guide provides sports bodies, governments, player associations, civil society organisations, and other stakeholders with a clear benchmark to ensure safe sport entities are able to prevent, investigate and respond to abuse in a manner that protects the safety, humanity, dignity and voice of impacted athletes.

Recent and continuing revelations of endemic, appalling and systemic abuse of athletes, often fostered by enabling cultures of sporting norms, nepotism, cover-up, and retaliation, have triggered a rush to establish safe sport initiatives. While potentially an important step , these processes commonly have significant shortcomings in purpose, culture, capacity, expertise, and transparency – often exacerbating harm for victims and survivors. Athletes turning to such entities report a lack of support and safety, an absence of trauma-informed approaches, ineffective reporting procedures, a legalistic and adversarial system of dispute resolution, and gaps when it comes to meaningful reparation and remedy.

Athlete trust – essential to the success of any safe sport initiative – has too often been destroyed by being forced into a system principally designed to protect the reputation of the sports body itself as opposed to identifying the justice needs of victims and systemic causal factors. Some sports bodies and governments have made the dangerous assumption that the already problematic sports integrity framework – designed around challenges such as anti-doping and match-fixing – is capable of addressing the particular challenge of abuse and the sporting environments which enable it.

Based on these experiences and coupled with the knowledge of experts in the field of trauma and abuse, the guide articulates six key principles that need to be embedded in the establishment and operations of safe sport entities to ensure that initiatives can deliver justice and support for survivors:

1. Human Rights-Based
2. Survivor-Centred
3. Independency & Accountability
4. Safety & Accessibility
5. Meaningful Stakeholder Engagement
6. Effective Remedy

In addition, the guide identifies five essential functions that such entities need to fulfil in order to respond to the needs of survivors and drive the necessary systemic change to achieve the stated safe sport purpose:

1. Support
2. Reporting
3. Investigation
4. Remedy
5. Prevention

The released guidance comes at a critical point in time, as FIFA is looking at establishing an structure on a global and multisport level, and other national-level initiatives are underway in several countries under the guidance of national governments.

EU Athletes General Secretary Paulina Tomczyk said:

“Every case of athlete abuse is one too many. Sport organisations, governments and other stakeholders need to recognize their responsibility and deal with the systemic abuse in sport head on. Establishing safe sport entities is a step in the right direction, but their structure and functioning need to be fit for purpose. With the Safe Sport Entity Guide, the player association movement is showing its committed to being a part of the solution and making sure that the protection of rights and integrity of athletes is a non negotiable priority.”

World Players Executive Director Brendan Schwab said:

“Abuse in sport is continuing to destroy the lives of thousands of players around the world. We cannot wait for the system to come up with a solution, as the system is part of the problem. There is an urgent need to establish new and carefully designed structures that can deal with these cases and meet the individual, collective and systemic justice needs of victims, survivors and athletes generally. This guide provides clear criteria to ensure that those initiatives can be effective, safe, trauma-informed, survivor-centred, and deliver the systemic change needed.”

The Army of Survivors Executive Director Julie Ann Rivers-Cochran said:

“While we agree that current safeguarding and reporting systems need to be revisited in order to prioritize athlete safety and wellbeing, our hope is that new entities being created are taking the right measures into account. By utilizing this guide, organizations have principles and key functions that will aid them in creating transparent and survivor-centered processes.”

Sport & Rights Alliance Director Andrea Florence said:

“To move forward, it is important that we learn from mistakes in the past. For too long we have seen processes and systems built to protect sport and its reputation. We need to finally start to focus on those most affected by the current failures: the athletes and survivors. For the effectiveness of any safe sport institution, it is absolutely critical to be based on meaningful, nonexploitative, safe and trauma-informed consultation with survivors.”

Establishing Effective Safe Sport Entities – Guide

Original press release by World Players Association