BCCI Prize Money for Women's World Cup: Is Pay Equity Just for Namesake?

After India clinched the ICC Women’s ODI Cricket World Cup 2025 in a historic final against South Africa at the DY Patil Stadium, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) announced a cash reward of Rs 51 crore for the victorious Women in Blue. This landmark victory ended years of near misses and heartbreak, including the losses in the 2005 and 2017 finals, finally crowning the India women as world champions for the first time.

The Rs 51 crore prize money is expected to be shared among the players, coaching staff, and support personnel of the India women’s cricket team. Notably, this amount is less than half of what the Men’s team received last year for their T20 World Cup victory. In addition, the team will also receive around Rs 40 crore awarded by the International Cricket Council (ICC) to the World Cup winners.

India secured a commanding 52-run victory over South Africa in the final, with Shafali Verma earning the Player of the Match award for her splendid batting and a handy contribution with the ball. Deepti Sharma was named Player of the Tournament, finishing with 215 runs and 22 wickets in the tournament, including a crucial half-century and a five-wicket haul in the final that proved instrumental in India’s historic win.

BCCI Prize Money for Women's World Cup: Is Pay Equity Just for Namesake?

With the World Cup win, Team India etched its name among the best women's cricket teams in the world. The Board of Control for Cricket in India’s (BCCI) has announced Women's World Cup prize money of Rs 51  crore for the India Women’s team following their historic World Cup 2025 victory and that is undoubtedly a landmark moment. But when compared with the Rs 125 crore awarded to the India men’s team after their ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024 victory, it shows a major disparity and raises serious questions about whether pay equity is more than just a gesture.

On one hand, the amount reflects progress as the women’s squad being awarded a substantial sum above the International Cricket Council (ICC) prize money shows the BCCI’s recognition of their achievement and willingness to reward it. The ICC itself had offered roughly Rs 40 crore to the winning team, making the total earnings for the Women in Blue around 91 crore, yet it is far below the men’s reward.

The fact that the men’s team received more than double the amount given to the women, despite India’s women breaking decades of near misses and finally claiming a historic world championship, displays an unfortunate reality about how men’s and women’s cricket are seen differently. This pay disparity highlights systemic issues regarding investment and commercial value assigned to women’s sport.

While the Rs 51 crore reward after winning the ICC Women's World Cup 2025 is a positive step, if compared with the past standards. There is rapid growth in commercial interest, viewership, and sponsorship of the women’s game, especially with the WPL, which should reduce the pay gap in the future.

BCCI Central Contracts Comparison for Men's and Women's Teams

If we take a closer look at the BCCI’s central contracts for India’s men’s and women’s teams, it shows that while progress has been made toward pay parity, a significant gap still remains. The BCCI, which is also the richest cricket board in the world, took a major step in 2022 by introducing equal match fees for both genders: ₹15 lakh for a Test, ₹6 lakh for an ODI, and ₹3 lakh for a T20I, ensuring that male and female cricketers earn the same for every game they play for India.

However, the disparity becomes clear when you look at the annual retainers. Male players are placed in four categories, A+, A, B, and C, with annual salaries of ₹7 crore, ₹5 crore, ₹3 crore, and ₹1 crore, respectively. In contrast, women cricketers have only three grades, A, B, and C, with retainers of ₹50 lakh, ₹30 lakh, and ₹10 lakh. This means that even the top-contracted women’s player earns only half of what a male cricketer in the lowest grade receives. The difference in contract retainers shows that there’s still a long way to go before true pay parity is achieved in Indian cricket.