The U.S. Women’s National Team has reached an agreement with U.S. Soccer in collective bargaining agreement negotiations, capping off an intense year-and-a-half fight between the team and the governing body.
The team was fighting for pay equal to the men’s national team, which has been far less successful but is paid more money. It’s unclear whether USWNT players will receive equal pay, but according to The New York Times, players will receive substantially more money and will be given improved playing conditions and accommodations:
The deal, which was ratified by the players on Tuesday night in Dallas and by U.S. Soccer’s board in a conference call, includes a sizable increase in base pay and improved match bonuses for the women’s team, changes that could see some players double their incomes to between $200,000 and $300,000 in a given year — and even more in a World Cup year.
The agreements also includes sought-after changes to noneconomic issues like travel, accommodations and working conditions. The union also won control of some licensing and marketing rights from the federation, another potential source of revenue for the players.
The sides released a joint statement on the deal, which The New York Times reports will run through 2021, so it does not affect the 2019 World Cup or the 2020 Olympics.
“We are pleased to announce that U.S. Soccer and the U.S. Women’s National Team Players Association have ratified a new collective bargaining agreement which will continue to build the women’s program in the U.S, grow the game of soccer worldwide, and improve the professional lives of players on and off the field. We are proud of the hard work and commitment to thoughtful dialogue reflected through this process, and look forward to strengthening our partnership moving forward.”
The USWNT has fought hard for equal pay ever since its World Cup title in 2015. Five players accused U.S. Soccer of wage discrimination for the drastic difference in pay between the men’s and women’s teams, even though the men’s team has been far less successful. For example, women’s players earned just $1,350 for a friendly win, while men’s players received $9,375 for a friendly win and $5,000 for a friendly loss. The former pay scale wasn’t just revenue-based, as U.S. Soccer claimed—women even earned less per ticket sold ($1.20) than men ($1.50).
The women’s team was also often forced to play on artificial turf, even when the men’s team wasn’t, and one game had to be cancelled because the turf was in such poor condition. Now, according to The New York Times, the playing conditions will be equal to the men’s playing conditions.
The USWNT restructured its union in early February in hopes of getting a deal done. Now that a deal is done, we will have to wait until we learn whether the team truly received equal pay, but this appears to be a step in the right direction.
