Everton forward Toni Duggan announced the birth of her daughter yesterday after becoming the first Women’s Super League player to benefit from new maternity cover.
Duggan, who has 79 caps for England, revealed her pregnancy in September, two weeks into the WSL season.
Duggan has not played for Everton since last year but has been entitled to full pay since taking leave.
An agreement between the Football Association (FA) and the Professional Footballers’ Association (PFA) led to the introduction of legislation at the beginning of this season allowing players to take maternity leave with full pay and any other remuneration for the first 14 weeks.