A recent Seton Hall Sports Poll sponsored jointly by the Sharkey Institute (and the Stillman School of Business) found that 91 per cent of women believe women should receive equal compensation for playing soccer. While only 74% of male respondents agree. The same goes for professional sports. Only 59 percent agree with this sentiment, but 79 percent of women think equal pay should be the norm. This is certainly progress, but we still have a long way to go before it's a reality.
Sandra Bullock
Sandra Bullock and other female athletes called for equal pay during the U.S. Women’s World Cup. Although they are not the only women involved in sport, there are many men who are also underpaid. The Best Team Award for the 2018 Women's World Cup was awarded to the US Women's National Team. Bullock presented this award to the team. Alex Morgan, the Best Female Athlete winner, represents the team.
The United States Women's National Soccer Team occupied the centre stage at 2019 ESPY Award. Bullock presented a Best Team Award (to Megan Rapinoe), the Golden Boot Award Winner of the FIFA Women's World Cup. Sandra Bullock, who wore a monochrome black ensemble, accompanied Megan Rapinoe on the stage in a double-breasted jacket with flapper-style tassels.
Alex Morgan
There's a long way to go before the United States women's national team earns the same as its male counterparts. There are steps to be taken in order to attain equal pay for women soccer players in the United States and other nations. Cherita Ellens CEO of Women Employed, states that women earn approximately 80 cents per dollar for every dollar earned by men. This is still a large gap, but Ellens is confident the women's team will eventually achieve equal pay for equal work. Ellens hopes that the players will make this a reality.
Equal pay is subjective. As an example, if the World Cup was won by the men's teams in 2015, it should be won by the women's teams as well. However, that doesn't mean the women's team should not be rewarded as much as the men's. The women's teams have played in more games than their male counterparts. They have had more work to keep up. The same is true of the prize money of World Cups. Not all players are called up to every camp. Injury, coaching decisions, and the number of games each team plays all factor into who plays when.
U.S. Soccer
A historic agreement has been reached between the USSF, soccer unions regarding equal pay for women and men in soccer. Both teams will receive equal share of World Cup prize money and pay. The agreement states that men and woman will be paid equally at non World Cup tournaments. If they play the same number games, both men and women will be paid the same amount in home and overseas.
Cone, a former woman's national team player, said in September that he wouldn't sign a contract for any team that didn’t offer equal prize money. On Tuesday, Cone reached a deal and the women's association supported it. Lawyers were present at the negotiations by the men's union. The women's players association congratulated players for winning the battle against gender discrimination. Leaders of the women's football players' union stated that they would continue holding U.S. Soccer accountable.
United States Women's National Team
The prize money is the biggest gap in soccer's pay. The 2022 FIFA World Cup will see men's teams competing for almost $440 million, while women are competing for only $30 million. A recent lawsuit filed by five top women's soccer players has called for equal pay in the sport. These soccer players claim that their salaries are four times less than their male counterparts. Equal pay for women in soccer is long overdue. But why is it still a problem.
There are many reasons why women and men have different salaries. Women have always had to compete with men in order to survive. However, the differences in compensation have been substantial. The USSF has never been transparent with its employees about their salaries. This is especially true for women on its staff. This explains their recent public relations blitz. A USSF spokesperson stated to Reuters that the organization is committed to equal pay for all its players.