In the News

By Benjamin Siegel

At least two members of Congress are calling on equal pay for female soccer players following the US Women's National Team's commanding World Cup win Sunday night.

Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D-NY) penned a letter to FIFA President Joseph Blatter Monday calling on the embattled FIFA leader to raise payouts for female soccer players.

Despite the 5-2 victory of Japan -– the most-watched soccer match in U.S. television history -— the winners will be paid just $2 million, four times less than a men's team bounced from the first round of the men’s tournament, Maloney noted.

"This year's World Cup proved that women playing soccer can inspire a country and bring a crowd to its feet just as men can," wrote Maloney. "But women will never achieve equality in the sport if FIFA itself discriminates against them."

Rep. Gwen Moore, D-Wisconsin, also tweeted her support for equal athlete pay, though there's not much any member of Congress can do to force wage changes.

National team goalie Hope Solo has also taken note of the campaign, and recently tweeted a picture of national team and equal pay supporters.

According to Politico, the total payout for the Women's World Cup was $15 million, or roughly 40 times less than the men’s World Cup payout of $576 million in 2014 -– when the Germanmen's national team netted $35 million.

Jerome Valcke, FIFA's secretary general, suggested in December that payouts for the men’s World Cup were higher than the women's because the former generates more revenue than the latter, according to the Guardian.

Maloney described that explanation as “baffling” given FIFA’s high-profile corruption scandal.

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