Australian Women and Men’s Soccer Teams Reach Deal to Close Pay Gap

The deal gives players an increased portion of World Cup and Asian Cup prize money. The federation also agreed to give both teams equal resources, upgrade the parental leave policy and set money aside for youth football programs.

But the pay gap will persist when it comes to World Cup payouts because the prizes in those tournaments vary drastically. The prize money for the 2019 Women’s World Cup was $30 million. For the Men’s World Cup the year before, the amount was $400 million.

The Matildas are ranked eighth in the world by FIFA, while the Australian men’s team is ranked 44th.

Members of the United States women’s team, which won the Women’s World Cup in France this year, have sued the sport’s governing body in the United States, accusing the organization of gender discrimination, and the case is set to go to trial in May. As the team was feted in a ticker-tape parade in New York, fans shouted “USA! Equal Pay!”

Ada Hegerberg, the star Norwegian striker for the French team Olympique Lyonnais, who was the first woman to receive the prestigious Ballon d’Or last year, quit her national team in 2017, saying it was not doing enough to support the women’s program. (The host at the Ballon d’Or ceremony asked her onstage if she knew how to twerk, drawing widespread condemnation.)

Australia is among the countries vying to host the 2023 Women’s World Cup. Speaking to the Australian Associated Press, the defender Ellie Carpenter said she thought the publicity around the pay agreement would help the bid.

Source: The New York Times

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