It is 5:00 a.m. on a Tuesday morning. Your alarm goes off and that means it is time for your first workout of the day. This workout will be one of three for the day. As a professional athlete this is part of your daily routine as you are constantly trying to stay in shape and perform to the best of your ability. To most people, this would seem like an extremely rigorous schedule, but for athletes, this is their job, just like someone who works in a cubicle. 

​

In industrialized America, companies have been working to make the workplace equal for both men and women, and the situation has become fairer. Even though the corporate world still has issues, sports is an entirely different monster. Just like the Men's USNT, the Women’s team also has a highly demanding schedule and is working to try to meet the same goals, so why are the athletes of both genders not paid equally? Female professional athletes should be paid equal to male athletes and this can be achieved by setting a base salary for all athletes and allowing athletes to earn bonuses. By setting an equal base salary, it presents an equal opportunity for members of both genders to make a living and be more accurately compensated for their workload. 

​

This difference in compensation can also be seen in college, not with the individual athletes but with various college teams and the money allocated to them. Under Title IX laws  male and female sports at the collegiate level should be given the same opportunities in terms of equipment and facilities. Before the creation of Title IX, female sports did not even have to be offered at the collegiate level. This issue was solved by the law while the disparity in funds was not. Many universities throughout the country still allocate more money to their male teams, as they are more “popular” and “well liked.” This leaves the female athletes with less than ideal circumstances. All collegiate level sports are under the umbrella of the NCAA (National Collegiate Athletic Association), and the NCAA determines the rules of their tournaments and how the money they make is used. This association is a federal association and is responsible for the entirety of America so it is their duty to ensure equal representation on both the male and female side of sports. 

​

If one looks at the 2021 March Madness tournament in mens and womens basketball it is clear that more funds and equipment went towards the men's tournament. The men were playing in Indianapolis and the women were playing in San Antonio. As this was a Covid year the tournament was run extremely differently than it would have been normally. That still does not excuse the lack of support and equality given to the women. Upon arrival in San Antonio, the women quickly noticed that their facility was not the same as the men. Through social media many female players brought attention to the fact that there was an obvious inequality. Specifically the NCAA did provide “a full weight-training area to the women's teams” (“NCAA Hires Law”). The NCAA explained that the women would obtain complete weight rooms once they made it to a certain round of the tournament. It cannot be disputed that this was an unfair scenario. The NCAA had clearly spent more time and money on the men’s tournament than the women’s and they thought it would go unnoticed. Instead though there was a massive uproar on social media and in the news that led to the NCAA giving women full weight rooms. 

​

The NCAA could solve the problem of allocating money by setting a base level of money that should be given to both the men’s and women’s tournaments. This ensures that they both have the same base level facility including a weight room. Then, depending on how much extra revenue the NCAA gets from each tournament, they can add bonus perks to each tournament. The same can be done with individual teams at universities. Each team should be given a base level budget and be able to earn bonuses for important successes such as winning national titles.

     The US women’s soccer team like the NCAA can solve their payment discrepancies in a similar way. The USWNT should be paid equally to the Men’s team especially since they are both national teams and supported by the country overall. Consistently, the USWNT has won tournaments and received substantially lower compensation. Take the women’s 2015 World Cup win for example. If the “women had pooled the $75,000 they each received from the U.S. Soccer Federation for winning, it still wouldn't equal the roughly $400,000 each member of the men's team would have made if his team had won the same tournament” (Stoffers). The male bonus should not have been that much higher than the women especially since they have not won a single World Cup and this was the fourth win for the women. This inequality with payment also appears in friendly games. For instance, “If each team were to play 20 friendlies over the course of a year and win them all, the women would receive $99,000 whereas the men would net $263,320” (“Better play, lesser pay”). This situation still shows that while both teams could be successful there is still a large gap in their amount of compensation. This should not be the case as their pay is not based on revenue. 

As a result of this particular situation, the players took action, “[Carli] Lloyd, [Megan] Rapinoe, [Hope] Solo, and two other teammates filed a complaint with the federal government. It accused the U.S. Soccer Federation of wage discrimination of paying women less than men, despite equal work--and more success--from the women” (Stoffers). This action by the team was completely justified, but it should never have reached this point. If the U.S. Soccer Federation had just simply paid equal salaries for the players, and given additional bonuses for team victories, this issue could have been shut down and the government would not have had to get involved. 

​

     This same issue of pay discrepancy in regard to success occurs in the WNBA. Unlike the USWNT, the WNBA is a league and not a national team, so their salaries work a bit differently. The individual women are paid more based on their own production, than that of the team. However, this setup does not eliminate the pay gap entirely. The women of the WNBA are still extremely underpaid compared to the men. The unfortunate part of this issue is that elite WNBA players are being paid less than NBA bench players. For example, Slyvia Fowles, one of the best players in the WNBA in 2017, led her team to the WNBA finals, led the league in shooting percentage and in blocks per game. These accomplishments are no easy feats, yet she still only made $109,000 that season. Compared with Leandro Barbosa, a bench player with the Suns in the same year, he made $500,000, even though he was waived by the team (Phelan). Yes, both of these athletes still must train and prepare for games, but one is working hard during games and producing and helping their team win, while the other is sitting on a cushioned chair. 

​

    As a result of this issue in the WNBA, many players have made arrangements to play overseas where the wages are fairer. In making this decision though the women do not leave their WNBA teams, as the seasons do not always conflict with each other. At the start of this epidemic, not many players went overseas but now, “90% of the league goes overseas” (Phelan). This large number of women feel like they have to leave the United States and work twice as hard for a equal salary in relation to their production. While the money sounds nice, “these women are playing year-round, which is terrible for your body. It's so much wear and tear” (Phelan). These female athletes should not have to risk their health both physically and mentally in order to try and earn more money. 

​

    However, as the WNBA is not a federal organization, they cannot help how much money they receive. The salary of their athletes is entirely based on their revenue and they cannot help that the NBA simply brings in much more revenue. In the 2016-2017 WNBA season, the average fan attendance at any given game was around seven thousand, this was ten thousand spectators less than that of the NBA (Phelan). By having more spectators at games, the NBA can afford to pay their players more and purchase other things such as screen time and endorsement deals. In the 2015-2016 season, the NBA made 5.9 billion dollars and while there is not as much data regarding the WNBA, it can be assumed that the revenue was much lower (Phelan). The only financially logical way for WNBA players and NBA players to make the same salary is if the leagues had the same amount of revenue. This situation would not be solved by the bonus solution that is being proposed. Instead this issue could be solved by creating a partnership between the WNBA and NBA that would allow both leagues to make more revenue. If the NBA promoted the WNBA more, and maybe even hosted double header games, a more equal salary could eventually be reached. 

​

 The solution to this financial problem must be approached with caution, as it will only be accepted if the concerns of the opposition are met, otherwise, this inequality will continue to be ever-present, and cause more conflict. Satya Marar explains what she believes to be the best solution, “The solution lies in paying male and female athletes an equal flat fee with a bonus determined as a share of the sponsorship revenue for each match” (Marar). If a bonus is the only way for an athlete to increase their salary this is fairer because everyone then has an equal opportunity for more money. This solution addresses the opposition's concerns and acknowledges that there is no logistical way that every athlete can just be paid the same entirely. 

​

Whether an athlete is a woman or a man, whether they play soccer or basketball, they have spent their whole life preparing to perform at the highest level possible. By paying both male and female athletes a more equal salary, both genders will be able to perform in an environment where their success is rewarded and acknowledged. While this may not be something that can be achieved in all professional sports easily, everything has to start somewhere. By putting in place a solution at the college level and in professional soccer other leagues and corporations can either follow their mold or come up with a solution that better fits their dynamic.  After all, no one likes waking up at 5 am. For an athlete however, it is part of their job. As a result, they should be paid properly for their work.