Ffion Davis is a trailblazer in the BJJ world. She broke silence on the gender pay gap in the industry, urging female athletes to value their worth and reject low or no compensation for their contributions.
In a recent social media post, Davis highlighted the stark reality faced by female competitors, particularly in the rapidly growing field of Nogi BJJ. Despite the surge in popularity, financial opportunities predominantly favor male athletes, leaving many talented women overlooked.
Addressing her fellow professional female athletes, Davis passionately encouraged them to refrain from accepting inadequate compensation for classes, seminars, or matches. Drawing on her personal experience of battling imposter syndrome, she shared a valuable perspective.
The post is accompanied by a picture of Davis in front of the flograppling logo, potentially casting a shadow over the streaming mogul. Ffion Davis last competed against Jasmine Rocha at WNO 19. This marks her first appearance on Flograppling (not counting IBJJF competitions) since 2021 – at WNO 10.
Davis wouldn’t be the only one to shade flograppling for lack of financial compensation. Earlier this year, Craig Jones put flograppling on blast for refusing to provide accomodations while Nicky Ryan basically does free work for them – promoting the streamer and the sport.
The post resonates a powerful message: Women deserve equitable pay for their skills and contributions. Davis stressed that accepting subpar compensation not only undermines the individual but also perpetuates a cycle of inequality for emerging talents. The call to action is clear—demand fair pay for professional shows, classes, and matches.
Davis’s stance received widespread support from prominent figures in the female BJJ community, including Livia Giles and Luiza Moneteiro. The solidarity among these athletes reflects a collective commitment to reshaping the landscape of women’s BJJ, fostering an environment where talent is duly acknowledged and compensated, irrespective of gender.
Some competitions are heading in the right direction. Just this year, ADCC has introduced a new division for females recognizing too big of a gap in between weight classes. It’s worth noting that ADCC does offer good prizes, however there is not absolute division for women, which effectively means that even the best female competitor has the opportunity to earn half of what her male counterpart makes.
