Catherwood LibraryILR School

Five players from the U.S. women’s national soccer team filed a complaint yesterday with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, accusing the U.S. Soccer Federation of paying the reigning World Cup champions thousands of dollars less than U.S. male soccer team members at nearly every level of competition. The U.S women’s team won the World Cup last summer for the third time, a first-ever achievement that was the most-watched soccer match in U.S. television history, and has won an Olympic gold medal in four of five tournaments. The revenue generated by the women’s team has been comparable with that of the men’s, generating $20 million more in 2015 according to a USSF report. While the women’s team earn a $1350 bonus if they win a game, the men’s team are guaranteed a $5,000 bonus even if they lose. Projections for the 2017 financial year expect that the women’s team will earn $5 million in profit, while the men are expected to earn a net loss of $1 million. The women’s team is being represented by prominent attorney Jeffrey Kessler, who represented Tom Brady during Deflategate as well as the landmark 1992 McNeil v. National Football League that introduced unrestricted free agency in pro football.