By Sulaimon Jamiu
It is indeed a galore of celebration for the U.S. Soccer Women’s National Team, as their years-long agitation for equal pay with men’s team becomes a reality after the men and women came together for landmark collective bargaining agreements that establish a groundbreaking compensation structure, and one that could have repercussions for other countries around the world. Although, the action is worthy of emulation.
The U.S. Women’s National Team Players Association and the U.S. Men’s National Team Players Association signed separate collective bargaining agreements with the U.S. Soccer Federation, but they both contain the same terms, including making the USA the first nation to pool FIFA’s World Cup prize money to be shared between the men’s and women’s teams.
The agreements, which run through 2028, will see the USWNT players achieve equal pay, while USMNT players remain “among the highest paid in the world” according to the federation’s release, even after making significant concessions that opened the door for the shared prize money pool.
In addition to the financial compensation, the women also earned equal terms for working conditions involving items such as travel budgets, training facilities and playing field surfaces.
The U.S. Soccer Federation will also be sharing a portion of commercial revenues (TV, sponsorship, etc.) with its players for the first time, incentivizing the players and federation to work more closely together to grow the sport.
