The US Soccer Federation and the United States Women’s National Team (USWNT) have reached an official agreement to settle the lawsuit for equal pay out of court. This article would analyze what this step means for gender equality in football.
The USWNT, for six years, had demanded equal treatment for female players and athletes. The cause had sounded absurd then, but their perseverance paid off on Tuesday, February 22, 2022, when they reached an official agreement with the US Soccer Federation. The federation agreed to pay the athletes 24 million dollars and make a pledge to equalize the pay for the men’s and women’s national teams in all competitions.
This victory was not just for the USWNT but also all female footballers. Over time, people have looked down on the efforts of women in football, and as such, women have not been properly compensated for their actions and rewarded for their talents over time.
It is heartwarming to see that female football is now getting much-deserved attention in recent times, but there is still a long way to create an equal environment for female footballers. It might be ridiculous to hear, but all-female club football matches are not available for viewing in most countries.
Aside from this, the total prize money for competitions for female football is relatively low, and the wages of female footballers are in direct comparison to their male counterparts. The prize money for the Women’s FA Cup in England, for example, is 25,000 pounds while that of the Men’s FA Cup is at 1.8 million pounds and this was after they claimed it witnessed a ‘significant’ increase.
We live in a society that advocates for gender equality but still neglects key areas that can create such a platform. The attention and interest of football lovers in women’s football have skyrocketed over time.
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Some women teams do much better than their male counterparts on the grandest stage of them all, for example. The USWNT has successfully won the FIFA Women’s World cup 4 times which is the highest since the inception of the competition in 1991 compared to their male counterparts, who have struggled over time to even qualify for the competition.
It is important to note that this battle goes beyond the female footballers and female athletes who have remained committed to representing their countries and nations on the grandest stage of them all.
I hope this victory can motivate female athletes and footballers in their pursuits to get the much-needed recognition they and their sport deserve.
