Five high-profile members of the U.S. Women's National Team filed suit against the U.S. Soccer Federation on behalf of their teammates seeking equal wages to their male counterparts. The action was filed with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.
The World Cup-winning women's squad, led by goalie Hope Solo and budding star Carli Lloyd, allege that, based on the USSF's 2015 financials, they were paid four times less than the men's team, despite generating nearly $20 million more in revenue for U.S. soccer's governing body. Per the suit, while the men's team, which went just 1-2-1 during play at the 2014 World Cup in Brazil, earned $9 million total, the Cup-winning women received just $2 million total.
Alex Morgan, Megan Rapinoe and Becky Sauerbrunn were also part of the suit.
"In early January, the Women's National Team Players Association submitted a reasonable proposal for a new CBA that had equal pay for equal work as its guiding principle," USWNT attorney Jeffrey Kessler said in a statement. "U.S. Soccer responded by suing the players in an effort to keep in place the discriminatory and unfair treatment they have endured for years."
In February, the USSF filed suit against the Women's National Team Player's Association, alleging that WNTPA executive director Richard Nichols did not believe a collective bargaining agreement existed between the two sides.
The USSF believes that a CBA, put in place in 2005 and altered in 2013, remains valid until 2016. They believe that Nichols, on behalf of the women's national team, was acting as if the CBA did not exist.
At the time, Nichols was adamant that a strike was not in the offing and that the players simply wanted to be treated "fairly and with some respect."
Solo, speaking about the suit on Thursday, indicated that the respect the players sought has not been offered at any point during her international playing career.
"I've been on this team for a decade and a half, and I've been through numerous CBA negotiations, and honestly, not much has changed," Solo said Thursday. "We continue to be told we should be grateful just to have the opportunity to play professional soccer, to get paid for doing it.
"In this day and age, it's about equality. It's about equal rights. It's about equal pay. We're pushing for that. We believe now the time is right because we believe it's our responsibility for women's sports and specifically for women's soccer to do whatever it takes to push for equal pay and equal rights. And to be treated with respect."
The USSF responded to the suit with "disappointment."
