“A Movement, Not a Moment”: The US Women’s National Soccer Team and Its Fight for Equal Pay, 2016-2020

From introduction: 'The chant started in the northern end of the stadium. It was faint at first, but it soon grew into a deafening roar as thousands of fans inside Stade de Lyon cried “EQUAL PAY!” during the closing seconds of the US Women’s National Team’s (USWNT) 2019 World Cup victory. Moments later, millions more fans watched on television as Nike aired an advertisement celebrating the players as leaders “fighting not just to make history, but to change it – forever” (1). This outpouring of support and female empowerment was the culmination of a months-long campaign by the players to garner support for their fight for equal treatment, resources, and compensation. Their fight had burst into public view six months earlier, when all 28 members of the USWNT team sued the United States Soccer Federation (USSF) for gender-discrimination. In the following months, USWNT players embarked on an “equal pay for equal play” campaign of press interviews, television appearances, corporate sponsorships, and social media posts. By the time of the World Cup final, the campaign had become a movement, with thousands of Americans voicing, tweeting, and posting their support.'