Professional Footballers Australia [PFA] are at loggerheads with Football Federation Australia [FFA] as their collective bargaining agreement negotiations stall over pay cuts.

It was hoped that talks this week would settle the collective bargaining agreement [CBA] but they didn’t produce a result and PFA President Matt McKay – who also captains Brisbane Roar – says agreeing on a model to bring the game forward is causing the delay.

“The current proposal from FFA has been delivered as an ultimatum and as a result the players have instructed the PFA to defend our legal and industrial rights and have resolved to fully support the PFA in doing so,” McKay said.

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The FFA are facing resistance from the PFA around the A-League salary cap in an ever lengthening delay. 

The Matildas push for more money is included in the negotiations. Photo: Getty

Professional Footballers Australia (PFA) and players are still committed to a “whole of game” collective bargaining agreement despite negotiations still at a “major sticking point”. 

“FFA’s insistence that the A-League salary cap be frozen for the next two seasons is a major sticking point in the negotiations, as is the need to solve the well documented concerns over the pay and conditions of Matildas players,” McKay said. 

“Furthermore, FFA has proposed substantial cuts to the pay of Socceroos.

“The players acknowledge that these are fundamental obstacles that have to be overcome if a new CBA is to be reached. Despite this, the players remain committed to continuing to pursue an agreement and at no stage have we abandoned the negotiations.”

The New Daily exclusively broke the story that the PFA and the Socceroos were launching legal action against the FFA earlier in June. 

The PFA want a unified CBA negotiated that covers Socceroos, A-League and Matildas players.

“At the heart of the negotiations is a simple requirement that the players receive a fair and equitable share of the revenue generated by the professional game, which must be contractually provided for in the new CBA,” they said.

“FFA’s insistence on freezing the cap and making cuts to the pay of the Socceroos comes at a time when the game is generating record revenue and follows four years of wage restraint.

“It will simply see player pay fall below what the game can afford which, in turn, will undermine the competitiveness of Australian football and the attractiveness of the A-League.”