US Women’s Soccer Stars File Federal Complaint Against US Soccer For Wage Discrimination

Five superstars from the US Women’s National Soccer Team, the defending 2015 World Cup champions, have filed a federal labor complaint against the sport’s American governing body, U.S. Soccer, claiming they are being paid only 40 percent as much as their male counterparts, despite creating tens of millions more in revenue.

Five US Women’s Soccer Team Stars File Federal Complaint

Co-captains Carli Lloyd and Becky Sauerbrunn, forward Alex Morgan, midfielder Megan Rapinoe and goalie Hope Solo all filed the paperwork on Thursday on behalf of the entire U.S. Women’s National Team, according to a press release from Winston & Strawn LLP, the law firm co-chaired by the women’s lead attorney, Jeffrey Kessler.

The complaints demands that the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) investigate U.S. Soccer.

“We have been quite patient over the years with the belief that the federation would do the right thing and compensate us fairly,” Lloyd, the MVP of last year’s Women’s World Cup, said in a statement released by the players and Kessler.

Solo spoke more bluntly, directly comparing her team with the men’s national team.

“The numbers speak for themselves,” Solo said. “We are the best in the world, have three World Cup championships, four Olympic championships, and the U.S.M.N.T. get paid more to just show up than we get paid to win major championships.”

Kessler claimed the players on the women’s team were shortchanged on everything, from bonuses and appearance fees to per diems.

“This is the strongest case of discrimination against women athletes in violation of law that I have ever seen,” Kessler stated.

The New York Times reported that the women’s team players are salaried employees, the top players earning about $72,000 a year by the federation. Nevertheless, the women contend that even with that extra income, their bonus structure means they earn far less than their male counterparts, who receive money from U.S. Soccer only if they are called to the national team.

A men’s team player, for example, receives $5,000 for a loss in a friendly match but up to $17,625 for a victory against a top opponent. A women’s player receives $1,350 for a similar match, but only if the United States wins; women’s players receive no bonuses for losses or ties.

The women’s national team Women’s World Cup victory last summer was America’s first World Cup victory in 16 years. The men’s team made it past the round of 16 in the 2002 World Cup in Korea and Japan.

The heated debate on cross-gender wage inequality has also recently arisen in other sports, most notably in professional tennis.

Caption: FRISCO, TX – FEBRUARY 10: Alex Morgan #13 of USA scores a goal in the first minute of play against Wendy Acosta #20 of Costa Rica during the 2016 CONCACAF Women’s Olympic Qualifying at Toyota Stadium on February 10, 2016 in Frisco, Texas. (Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)