The USWNT equal pay settlement is a $24 million agreement, reached in February 2022, that ended the U.S. women’s national team players’ six-year fight against the U.S. Soccer Federation over unequal pay. It combined a lump-sum payout to current and former players with a binding commitment that future compensation, bonuses, and World Cup prize money would be split equally with the men’s national team.
How the $24 Million Is Divided
The settlement breaks into two pieces. Twenty-two million dollars is designated as back pay, distributed to players in a manner proposed by the players and approved by the court. The remaining $2 million funds players’ post-career goals and charitable work in women’s and girls’ soccer, with each player eligible to apply for up to $50,000.1ESPN. USWNT, US Soccer Federation Settle Equal Pay Lawsuit
The settlement class covers every women’s national team player from June 11, 2015, through the date of final judgment, so both active roster members and retired players from that window share in the recovery.2Classaction.org. Morgan et al. v. United States Soccer Federation Settlement Agreement
Judge R. Gary Klausner granted preliminary approval on August 11, 2022,3NBC Philadelphia. Equal Pay Deal for US Women’s Soccer Approved by Judge and final approval followed on December 13, 2022.4Law360. Final Approval Granted to US Women’s Soccer Settlement
The CBA Condition That Made It Real
The money was contingent. U.S. Soccer’s payment obligation only took effect once the federation and both national team unions ratified new collective bargaining agreements that equalized pay going forward.5NPR. Women Soccer Contracts Equal Pay Settlement USWNT Those CBAs were announced on May 18, 2022, and formally signed on September 6, 2022, at Audi Field in Washington, D.C., following a match against Nigeria.6U.S. Soccer. US Soccer, USWNTPA, USNSTPA to Officially Sign Historic CBAs
What the New CBAs Equalize
The agreements run through 2028 and set identical terms for the men’s and women’s teams in three areas:
- Appearance fees and performance bonuses for friendlies and tournament matches are the same for both teams.7U.S. Soccer. USSF Women’s and Men’s National Team Unions Agree to Historic Collective Bargaining Agreements
- FIFA World Cup prize money from the 2022 and 2026 men’s tournaments and the 2023 and 2027 women’s tournaments is pooled, with an equal percentage distributed to players on each World Cup roster. U.S. Soccer was the first federation in the world to do this.7U.S. Soccer. USSF Women’s and Men’s National Team Unions Agree to Historic Collective Bargaining Agreements
- Broadcast, sponsorship, and partner revenue collected by U.S. Soccer is split 50/50 between the two teams.8NBC News. Equal Pay: US Soccer Reaches Historic Bargaining Agreement
There is a tradeoff. The women’s team had previously negotiated guaranteed annual base salaries, health insurance, maternity leave, and contracted roster spots, with lower per-game bonuses in exchange.9EEOC. Morgan v. USSF Amicus Brief Under the new deal, the women gave up those guaranteed salaries. Both teams now operate on the same pay-to-play model that the men’s side had always used.7U.S. Soccer. USSF Women’s and Men’s National Team Unions Agree to Historic Collective Bargaining Agreements
Why There Was No Court Ruling on the Merits
The players did not win the equal pay claim in court. In May 2020, Judge Klausner granted partial summary judgment for the federation on that claim, finding that from 2015 to 2019 the women’s team played 111 games and earned $24.5 million (about $220,747 per game), while the men played 87 games and earned $18.5 million ($212,639 per game). By that measurement, the women earned more both in total and per game.10ESPN. U.S. Women’s National Soccer Team’s Equal Pay Act Claim Dismissed but Other Gender-Based Claims Remain The judge also found the women could not retroactively claim their CBA was inferior when they had rejected the men’s pay-to-play model in negotiations.11Findlaw. Alex Morgan et al. v. United States Soccer Federation, Inc.
The players appealed to the Ninth Circuit in July 2021, arguing that comparing total earnings hid the fact that the women reached higher totals only by playing far more games, while their per-game bonus rates were lower than the men’s in nearly every category.12Entrepreneur. US Women’s Soccer Settles Equal Pay Lawsuit: A Timeline The EEOC filed an amicus brief supporting the players, arguing the district court had wrongly measured pay by total compensation instead of comparing equivalent rates like per-game bonuses, and had effectively acted as a fact-finder at summary judgment by picking one expert over another rather than letting a jury decide.9EEOC. Morgan v. USSF Amicus Brief
The settlement came before the Ninth Circuit ruled. Because of that, the case produced no appellate precedent on the correct method for measuring pay discrimination under the Equal Pay Act, and courts in different jurisdictions still apply varying standards for comparing compensation.13PBS NewsHour. U.S. Soccer Federation and Women’s Team Settle Lawsuit for $24 Million
The FIFA Prize Money Gap the Settlement Does Not Close
Equal pay within U.S. Soccer sits on top of a still-unequal global pool. The 2023 Women’s World Cup prize pool was $110 million, up from $30 million in 2019 but well below the $440 million awarded at the 2022 Men’s World Cup. FIFA President Gianni Infantino said in 2023 that the organization aimed to equalize prize money by the 2026 men’s and 2027 women’s tournaments, while acknowledging the broadcast revenue gap as a barrier.14Equalizer Soccer. Women’s World Cup Prize Money Increases Over 300% The U.S. pooling arrangement means that whatever FIFA distributes to either American team flows into a shared pot, so American players on both sides get the same percentage regardless of which tournament produced it.