The England women's rugby skipper Sarah Hunter has defended the decision by the Rugby Football Union to cut their match fees in half to £400 for their World Cup warm-up matches.
The Red Roses are ranked number one in the world and are favorites going into next month's World Cup but earn a fraction of what the country's men's side receive. The women's players usually receive £800 per Test, but are playing Wales and the United States this month for £400 per match.
Captain Hunter defended the move and said players agreed the reduction with the RFU and wants to focus on their World Cup warm-up game against Wales in Bristol on Wednesday.
"We agreed to it," she said. "We signed our contract months ago so that we wouldn't have to have conversations around match fees.
"We just want to focus on the game on Wednesday then the World Cup, not on what the match fees are, what they could be or what they should be. Our focus is purely on our next game."
For last year's Six Nations tournament England men split a pot of £2.1 million evenly between the 28-man squad, with each player receiving around £75,000 for the five games or £15,000 per match whether they played or not.
The RFU were the first union to offer full-time contracts to their women's side in 2019. Players receive between £26,000 and £33,000 per year for their England involvement.
On the pitch the Red Roses could make history in their match against Wales on Wednesday. If they win England's women would become the first team to win 25 Tests in a row.
The players' union the Women's Rugby Association (WRA) called the RFU decision to cut match fees "disappointing given the current success and recent achievements of the Red Roses".
The WRA added: "We hope this is resolved in a timely manner to ensure all focus can be on the preparations for the Rugby World Cup."
Hunter has defended the move by the RFU and highlighted the work the organisation is doing for the women's game. When asked if she would like to see parity between the fees men and women England rugby players receive, she added: "I'm sure those conversations will happen.
"New contracts will happen. You've just got to look at what the RFU has done for investment in the women's game. It is more than anyone else on and off the pitch.
"I'm sure those negotiations on match fees will be done with the RFU, with the players and with the RPA to come to some agreement that everyone is happy with. We're just here to play rugby and those conversations will be taken up in the next contractual talks."
England women begin their Women's World Cup campaign in New Zealand against Fiji on October 8.
