More Than A Magazine, A Movement
Megan Rapinoe hung up her soccer cleats after the final U.S. game of the 2023 World Cup. Rapinoe has proven herself as one of her generation’s most talented female players. Off the field, Rapinoe has been a leader on crucial social issues like LGBTQ+ rights, racial justice, gender equality and pay equity.
To many of her fans, her profile as a fierce agent for change is the defining component of her legacy. Count me among them.
The U.S. Women’s National Soccer Team announced a deal that guarantees women and men who play for the national teams will receive the same compensation opportunities. While feminists and USWNT fans celebrated the decision, not unexpectedly, misogynists came roaring back with cries of “Unfair!” “Wokeness!” “Biology!”
It seems a number of men on the internet are outraged by the very suggestion that women athletes might be deserving of equal pay.
Last month’s USWNT landmark legal victory placed women athletes on an equal footing with their male counterparts. But true equality will never be reached unless women in all fields, with men’s support, are willing to finally stand up for themselves and collectively demand equal pay across all professions.
The U.S. is now the first country to grant equal pay for its men’s and women’s soccer teams. But for years, U.S. Women’s National Soccer Team players have repeatedly complained that they’ve been getting as little as 40 percent of the salary their male counterparts get—especially considering the women’s team has four World Cup titles and the men’s team has … none.
Soccer superstar Abby Wambach spoke with Ms. about the new young readers edition of her bestselling book, “Wolfpack.”
It felt like everyone was watching the World Cup final this July. And when the U.S. Women’s National Team won—claiming their second world championship title in a row and their fourth overall—it felt bigger than just a victory for their team.
