The U.S. women’s soccer team drew more viewers winning last year’s World Cup championship than the men’s World Series and NBA finals. The women’s team (who are Olympic favorites this year) also outperformed the men’s team and brought in $16 million last season, according to CNN.
The players on the team are focused on a new mission: being paid less than members of the men’s team. According to Jeffrey Kessler, a lawyer representing the women, the team is outperforming men’s soccer in every way.
Kessler also says the female players are paid between 28 percent and 62 percent less than the males, depending on the match. Men can earn as much as $17,625 against a major opponent, yet women can only earn up to $4,950 even if they win all games of the season.
As the first step to moving forward the women filed a complaint Wednesday [March, 30] with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission who enforce equal pay law. Kessler believes this will spark more attention to the issue of pay difference with men and women.
