AC MILAN INTRODUCES MATERNITY POLICY FOR PLAYERS AND EMPLOYEES

In what is a first for the elite clubs in European football, AC Milan unveils innovative maternity policy for its players and staffformally providing a range of protections during pregnancy and early childhood that go beyond current regulations.

According to the 2017 FIFPRO Global Employment Report, a worldwide study of working conditions in women’s football, only 2% of players surveyed across four continents had children, while 47% said they would leave football to start a family.

With this policy, AC Milan intends to support its technical players throughout their development journey, not only in their professional development, by creating an environment that enables them to make important life choices. In addition to the protection already provided by the regulations in force, the Club will also guarantee:

Rossonere players will also continue to benefit protection related to pregnancy, compulsory remuneration and return to activity in accordance with the regulations in force, in particular FIFA guidelines, the AIC collective agreements and the internal regulations of the Club. AC Milan also provides its players with specialists in the field of psychopedagogy, physiotherapy and nutrition and reserves the right to engage external experts if necessary.

To define its policy, AC Milan players from the First Team and Primavera Team were involved in a process guided by the psychological-pedagogical area of ​​the club, through meetings, interviews and surveys. In the same spirit of sharing, AC Milan will continue to build and shape its offer to ensure the creation of an increasingly inclusive and safe environment for its players and staff members.

Giorgio Furlani, CEO of AC Milanhe stated: “We are proud to present such an important project, which once again demonstrates how much AC Milan pays attention to the issues that matter to all members of the Rossoneri family. We want this new step to further motivate the growth and development of the entire Club, becoming a role model at national and international level, ensuring that the world of football becomes increasingly an environment in which everyone is free to make important personal decisions.”

Elisabet Spina, head of women’s football at AC Milanadded: “The club has always attached great importance to the well-being of its players and staff, both professionally and privately. For example, we were the first Italian club to provide our players with social security benefits, long before the introduction of professionalism. We have also demonstrated this through the #WeAllAreFootball manifesto aimed at easing gender conflict, which has led to the definition of principles, initiatives and concrete interventions in the club’s infrastructure. Now we are starting a new season in which we will work to achieve important goals, both on and off the pitch: we are happy to do this by introducing our innovative policy.”