Joe Biden Says He Would Cut Funding To U.S. Soccer Federation If Women Players Don’t Get Equal Pay

Joe Biden said that, as president, he would withhold funding to the U.S. Soccer Federation until players on the women’s national team are paid equal to those on the men’s team.

As CNN reported, the women’s team suffered a legal setback this week when a federal judge dismissed their claim of being unfairly paid and earning less than the men’s national team. The United States women’s national team (USWNT) had filed suit against the U.S. Soccer Federation in March of last year, with all 28 players listed as plaintiffs.

The lawsuit claimed that the inequalities in pay constituted federal discrimination because they allowed the women to be paid less “for substantially equal work and by denying them at least equal playing, training, and travel conditions; equal promotion of their games; equal support and development for their games; and other terms and conditions of employment equal to the MNT.”

But Judge R. Gary Klausner ruled that the members of the women’s team had not sufficiently proven wage discrimination under the Equal Pay Act.

The judgment was met with pushback from critics, including the presumptive Democratic Party nominee for president in 2020. Biden voiced his support for the women’s team on Saturday, tweeting a vow to cut funding to the U.S. Soccer Federation as president if the inequities in pay were not addressed.

“This is not over yet. To @USSoccer: equal pay, now. Or else when I’m president, you can go elsewhere for World Cup funding,” he wrote on Twitter.

Biden has been a supporter of soccer throughout his time in the White House, and this week hosted an Instagram live chat with U.S. star Megan Rapinoe, who joked that she would be available if Biden was looking for a running mate. Biden joked that she would have to be willing to accept a pay cut.

The court battle over equal pay does not appear to be over yet. Molly Levinson, a spokesperson for the players, said they were shocked by this week’s decision but planned to press forward and remained confident in their case. She offered an encouraging message that women and girls who play soccer will be valued the same as their male counterparts.

“We have learned that there are tremendous obstacles to change; we know that it takes bravery and courage and perseverance to stand up to them. We will appeal and press on. Words cannot express our gratitude to all who support us,” Levinson said in a statement posted to Twitter.