The class-action lawsuit was filed in March and involved all 28 players on the USWNT, who claimed that they are discriminated against based on their gender. They argue that they've reached measures of success that exceeds that of the men's team. Specifically, they reference their 4 World Cup titles and 4 Olympic Gold medals, which outweighs a meager 0 World Cup titles and 0 Olympic medals on the men's side.
Although US Soccer has made some effort to raise funding for the USWNT, they maintain that the difference in wages are associated with differences in revenue generated from each side. Although I can understand where the female athletes are coming from, I think it's important for them to realize that it doesn't matter how many World Cup titles or Olympic medals you win. If you don't generate an equal revenue model to that of the men's team, of course you're going to be paid less. The market doesn't care about the number of titles or medals. It only cares about the value you bring to the market, specifically, the revenue you generate for your organization.
https://time.com/5653250/uswnt-equal-pay-lawsuit/
It is kind of ridiculous that the women perform so much better compared to the men and they don't get paid nearly as much as the male athletes. Of course, there is always a motive for this unequal payment whether it be gender discrimination or 'generation of revenue'. Regardless, the women's team should be paid more than they are right currently because their performance is enough to deserve the pay raise by itself.
ReplyDeleteAs unfair as it may be, this is a prime example of where sports intersect business. Unfortunately, success on the soccer field does not always translate to revenue. While ideally every sport played at the highest level would be purely for "the love of the game," nothing is sustainable without making money. For instance, this is the same reason why players, will leave a successful club during free agency, as another club will offer them a richer contract. At the end of the day, sports are not sustainable without generating revenue.
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