I think I’ll remember July 17, 2019 for the rest of my life. I was sitting with my right leg propped up and iced, recovering from an ACL reconstruction, watching the final of the 2019 Women's World Cup. I diligently followed the U.S. Women’s National Soccer Team’s progress throughout the entirety of the tournament. The final match was between the USWNT and the Netherlands Women’s National Football Team. With every pass, dribble, and attempted shot my eyes were glued to the screen. Then it happened; a foul inside Netherlands’s goalie box. I remember moving closer to the edge of my seat as star forward Megan Rapinoe lined up to take the penalty kick. The ref's hand signaled start; Rapinoe breathed. Dashing forwards, she shot the ball low. I held my breath as I watched Dutch goalie Sari Van Veenendaal dive towards the ball as it rocketed towards the lower right corner. The ball slammed into the back of the net giving the US the first point of the game. Rose Lavelle later sealed the win with a shot from her favorite left foot. You can watch both the U.S. goals and additional highlights here.
Following the match, the stadium surged to their feet and began this resounding chant: “Equal pay USA!” Back in NYC, the chant continued to grow, calling for equal pay for the U.S. Women's Soccer Team. Earlier that year on March 8, International Women’s Day, the USWNT World Cup Squad filed against the United States Soccer Federation (USSF), suing them for the right to equal pay for an estimated amount of $67 million.
The lawsuit continued over the next three years, being argued in court, and dismissed in a Federal Court in 2020; however, the WNT appealed their case. Finally, almost three years later, on February 2, 2022, the case against the USSF was settled, which awarded the World Cup squad a total of 24 million dollars. The USSF and USWNT said in a joint statement: “We are pleased to announce that, contingent on the negotiation of a new collective bargaining agreement, we will have resolved our longstanding dispute over equal pay and proudly stand together in a shared commitment to advancing equality in soccer.”
World Cup Champion forward Alex Morgan said on NBC’s Today show “U.S. Soccer has agreed to equalize the prize money moving forward, obviously, we call on FIFA to truly equalize that for men’s and women’s tournaments,” implying that this equality that the U.S. women now receive should not only be endorsed, but guaranteed at an international level. Similarly, in an interview with Good Morning America, forward Megan Rapinoe said "I think we're going to see that [equal pay] in the coming days and hopefully this will be a day we look back on in a number of years when we're a little bit older and say that's the moment that everything changed.”
Though these settlements are brilliant and very much needed, it leads me to ask the following questions: Why was the USSF paying the WNT less in the first place? What is the reason for why women athletes are paid less? How does the settlement that the WNT reached affect or change the situation for other women athletes and sports? Most importantly, what can I do to help that change occur?
Is the reasoning behind lesser pay for women due to their performance, or a change in the game? No. According to the USWNT’s official demand for trial by jury, the players must adhere to the same rules of the game of soccer as established by the Federation Internationale de Football Association (FIFA). This means that, like their male counterparts, they play on the same size field, use the same size ball, have the same duration of matches, and play by the same rules. So the women’s game isn’t to blame.
Instead, as in many sports, the gender pay gap is the result of decades of underinvestment and sexism. This sexism in soccer goes as far back as 1921, when the Football Association of England (FA) issued a ban on professional women’s soccer because it was considered to be “quite unsuitable for females, and ought not to be encouraged.” After WWI, professional male soccer players returned back to England and were surprised that women’s sports had become so popular. Afraid that they would lose support towards their clubs, and thus their jobs, they pressured the FA to place a ban on women’s professional soccer. Prior to the ban, women’s soccer was all the rage in England, France, and beginning to spread to other countries around the globe. However, this ban halted the momentum that could have easily equalized the game early on, and set a precedent for women’s sports in the future. The FA ban on women’s soccer was eventually revoked in 1972, which was consequently the rebirth of women’s professional soccer; however, the damage to the industry had already been done.
The current reasoning for under-supporting women’s soccer, and consequently other women’s sports, is marketing. Because support was stripped away from women’s soccer in the birth of professional women’s sports, more sponsorship money was poured into the men’s sports industry. Deals with companies such as Nike, Adidas, and other big-name brands were already made in support of men’s sports, leaving less money available for women. In addition to that, advertisement and televising contracts have been consistently pitched more towards men’s athletics than women’s. In recent years, these contracts and deals have been changing; however, often change can’t come soon enough.
Thankfully, statements and actions in support of women’s athletics from international corporations, such as Coca-Cola and Proctor & Gamble, have been a major push in equalizing pay in women’s sports. However, it is evident that the biggest push factor in changing the system and equalizing the pay in women’s athletics comes from the common people such as you and me. We as a society need to change our viewpoint, our support. In addition we need to realize that equalizing women’s sports pay should eventually, and sooner than later, reach and apply to all forms of work.
Currently, not a lot will change. This is due to the process, the time frame, and the gender inequality that women athletes still face today. However, the recent equalization in pay for U.S. Women’s Soccer promotes the ability to change, not just the need for it. This shows that there is a possibility and reality of equality on the world stage, which hopefully will trickle down into the grass-roots of the sport. When influences arise from the roots, or trickle down into the soil thereof, it usually becomes an ingrained part of our society and culture.
In former USWNT striker Abby Wambach’s address to Barnard College’s Class of 2018, she has a moment where she says that after a soccer player shoots a goal, when all of her teammates are running onto the field, “it appears that we’re celebrating her; but what we’re REALLY celebrating is every player, every coach, every practice, every sprint, every doubt, and every failure that this one single goal represents.” These concepts can be translated outside the world of soccer. When one woman, one minority, takes a big step forward, we all move forward. When these steps are taken, they show that change is not only necessary, but possible. Change is happening, and for the better. As a community, we should support and further encourage this progress, and take the first step towards making a better world for tomorrow by leveling the playing field today.
The Student Movement is the official student newspaper of Andrews University. Opinions expressed in the Student Movement are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the editors, Andrews University or the Seventh-day Adventist church.