In the summer of 2014, 40 of the top female soccer players in the world announced that they are taking a stand against FIFA and the CSA (Canadian Soccer Association), stating that they are prepared to file a lawsuit against the companies. The tension throughout this lawsuit has been building for many years now. At the heart of the argument is the fact that next year’s women’s world cup is planned to take place on artificial turf instead of real grass. (McIntyre 2014). Gender inequality/discrimination is to deny equal rights to one group of people based on their gender. (Bonvillain and Miller 2013: 42). Based on this definition, the women have a very solid case. Forcing the female players to play on the turf field, while the men play on real grass that costs more to uphold and take care of, is treating them inadequately and less important* than the male soccer players. Continuing the trend in our society of male dominance.
The anger of the female soccer players is not solely based on the fact that their male counterparts play on grass and them on turf, but more so that organizations such as FIFA and the CSA treat them this way on a constant basis. More money is required to replace and maintain a soccer field made of grass, to have it looking up to par after every game. FIFA and the CSA would much rather conserve that money for the male players. This is because they believe more people are going to be coming to watch the males, rather than “waste” those funds on the females
Soccer is a sport that many know and love. It has been globalized through the ages, and has brought many people enjoyment by watching, and playing the sport. While soccer has brought many people from around the world together, it has also driven a wedge between males and females in society. This sport is controversial for many reasons. It brings about controversy because of the fact that some people can clearly identify the separation of equitable treatment between the genders, while others are oblivious to this idea. Many people from around the world have joined in on this topic. This not only shows the connection of globalization to the gender inequalities, but it shows the link between
“Equal play. Equal pay.” –U.S. Women’s National Team (Reiher). The gender pay gap is surprisingly still a large problem today. Not only in soccer, but in every sport women exert the most effort, yet they do not receive the credit. The U.S. Woman’s National Team should receive an equal amount of pay as the men’s team because they have won more titles, they are better soccer players, and they bring in more income.
When it comes to sports men and women are rarely given equal opportunities to excel. This is the case in soccer specifically, as many individuals over look women’s soccer. Women are having to play on turf fields which is causing more injuries compared to men playing on natural grass. Men also make more money per match and they receive money if they lose, whereas the women do not receive any money if they lose a match. While women are becoming more successful, the men’s team has been around longer and bring in more media coverage and endorsements for the league. Despite the discrepancies found in media coverage of both teams, the US soccer federation and Federation International Football Association should provide equal opportunities for both men’s and women’s soccer teams.
Regardless of skin color, women in general somehow always tend to get the short-end of the stick; but that doesn’t mean that they won’t fight for what they believe in. Recently, there has been much debacle in the world of sports. The Guardian posted an article on how the US Women’s Soccer Team is accusing the US Soccer Federation of wage discrimination. Five members of the team filed a federal complaint stating that they were paid four times less than the males within the past year. In the article, soccer player Megan Rapinoe stated during a press release that, “Recently, it has become clear that the federation has no intention of providing us equal pay for equal work.” Meanwhile, The Guardian also took statements from players Hope Solo and Carli Lloyd as they argued on an NBC show that, “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.” Lloyd then added that, “I think we’ve proven our worth over the years. Just coming off a World Cup win, the pay disparity between the men and women is just too large. We want to continue to fight. The generation of players before us fought. And now it’s our job to keep
Equality between people is what makes the United States of America different from other nations. Ironically, in the United States professional soccer leagues there is a dearth of gender equality. This can be seen through the gender difference in salary. In 2013, professional women soccer players were yearly being paid $15,000 each, about nine times less than the men earned (Bloomberg BusinessWeek). Just like the United States, Australia also faces unequal pay between men and women in professional soccer. Many professional women soccer players that can’t support themselves off their salary. This not only makes the players want to quit, but also makes future generations not want to take part in women’s soccer. Sadly, for more than two decades, women soccer players have experienced unequal pay. Over the years, many players have to find another job to support themselves or they quit playing soccer. Leaders of the Women’s Professional Soccer League have made fruitless attempts to resolve this problem, by giving women the same amount of tournament prize money as the men’s team, by raising the women’s salary a few thousand dollars, and by obtaining sponsors for the women’s soccer league. The way to fix the inequality within professional soccer in the United States is to give equal pay to both genders. To accomplish that, the leaders/board members from both the Men’s Soccer League and the National Women’s Soccer League would have the men soccer players’ salary will be lowered to
The development of civil rights women since the 1950’s and 1960’s has been tremendous, but there are still some things that have not changed. Before, women were prohibited from many of the everyday things in our society. Women could not obtain credit cards; they could not attend Ivy League schools, or go on birth control pills. Recently, on March 30, the U.S women’s soccer team filed a complaint to U.S Soccer for wage-discrimination. The individual players of the team earn as little as 40% of what players on the U.S men’s soccer team earns. Not only do they earn significantly less than the men players, but they also play on damaged and dangerous fields, such as the one during their World Cup Victory Tour friendly against Trinidad and Tobago. Even
The United States (U.S.) Women's Soccer Team has become more profitable, more watched, and more successful than the United States Men’s Soccer Team. They have gotten to where they are at now not through money but through their struggle to play the sport they love. U.S. Women’s Soccer started from the crazy thought of women playing a men’s sport to a dominating spot at the top of this nation’s soccer winning game after game. Still no matter if they are more profitable, more watched, and more successful, the U.S. Women’s soccer team is extremely underpaid compared to the men’s team. The U.S. Men’s team even gets paid more just for showing up to their games than the women do to win major championships (Zirin).
Listen Up! Men are getting paid thirty-five million and women are only getting paid two million for winning the World Cup. We need to step up and you need to help. How would you feel if you got $2 for mowing a lawn and your brother got $35 for mowing that same lawn? Have you ever thought life isn’t fair? Well, the Women’s World Cup team feels that way also. Men are getting paid more for lesser performance. They won the World Cup and only got paid a fraction of what the men made. Also, they are fighting for equal rights, but if they keep fighting they could get boycotted from the Olympics. Female soccer players need a salary that matches their ability.
In every country, soccer stars are celebrated, they are young children’s’ heroes, and they inspire nations. Soccer is played in small villages in Africa, suburbs in America, and the arctic tundra of Russia, it can be played anytime, anywhere. It is the only sport that serves as a universal language, citizens in every country know the basics of soccer. Anyone, of any age, can play. It serves as a common connection for humanity and the players set examples for most of the world. If women are not being paid equally on the only platform that has the ability to reach the entire planet, it is no wonder that so many countries do not believe in women’s rights. However, if they were paid the same as men, they would be setting an example for the entire world. Many countries would begin to better understand that women are equal. After all, so many of life’s lessons are taught to children through games, especially games like soccer. This sport is a very rare, if not the only, opportunity to teach the entire world that women are just as equal as men, and not just on the soccer field. Women’s soccer could serve as the messenger to the world, and “kickoff” a new attitude for the equal treatment of women and really get the ball rolling on equal pay for women. This sport has the unique opportunity to use its influence to change attitudes that will seep
The United States Women’s National soccer team overpowered Columbia on April 6, 2016. The United States Women’s National team ended up beating Columbia 7-0 in East Hartford Connecticut. The Pratt and Whitney Stadium was filled with 21,792 chilled fans cheering and chanting for equal pay. There were many signs saying “Equal Play=Equal Pay,” and “Grass Only,” a reference to the artificial turf fields that the women’s team has been bothered about for many years now. After the game, The New York Times interviewed with Becky Sauerbrunn, a defender on the team. She said, “We have the best fans in the world” and “To support us like that, we’re really appreciative.” I was actually at the game on April sixth and it was a very moving game. When the players
Gender inequality plays a critical role when it comes to social progress. As a woman,
Through the movies viewed in this course this semester, we saw women who were able to play against men and still keep their femininity. Nothing is lost when playing sports not traditionally meant for a particular race or gender. Society must become more understanding when it comes to the sports different types of people play and hinder from stereotyping anyone when they participate and perform well in that sport.
By turning women away from playing certain sports, we are influenced to believe that they are not as qualified to play, compared to men. (Creedon, 1994). Ironically, women on the field seem to have to act tougher than the men. If an
As long as female football has been around, participation is increasing on a regular basis regardless the ideas, thoughts, injuries and stereotypes that continue to be reported. Establishment of female football teams are discussed for the safety, treatment and support of females today. The position of the female footballer has been and continues to be a struggle to the point the game is perceived as a normal sporting activity for woman and girls whereas some feel it’s time for a league of their own. Many people didn’t know female football goes back to as far as the early 1900’s as society continues to be for and against the will to play. Females are equal to male under law but yet challenge gender norms when it comes to playing football. Yet one side of the debate state some specific and compelling evidence in which supports why female football players should be treated equal and that their participation in football should not have any influence on gender identity and is somewhat undetermined. While on the other side of the debate some may feel many females have had to overcome many obstacles to participate in the game football while others feel the football field is just not the place for a female. Females put forth the same amount of hard work, dedication and efforts that males do but yet seem to be pushed
Throughout the past few decades, the gender inequality discourse have became a dominant feature of international, national and local policy debate on the subject of economic development. This policy concern has emerged as an area of scholarly research which seeks to show that improving gender equity leads to economic growth.