The US women’s national team earns cumulative bonuses for its success in the World Cup. If the players swapped places with their male counterparts, those bonuses would be a lot more lucrative.
USWNT players can earn a maximum of $260,869 each if they win the World Cup and go on a victory tour, while if the men had made the last World Cup and won the whole thing, each player would’ve earned more than $1.1 million, according to The Guardian.
Each member of the USWNT earned $90,000 in bonuses for reaching the quarterfinals. However, if the women’s team enjoyed the same bonuses that the men’s team is entitled to, that number would be $550,000.
The stark difference between the two numbers stems from a system that rewards the men’s team more in World Cup bonuses and offers the USMNT a set of bonuses the USWNT does not get to enjoy.
Now that the USWNT advanced to the semifinals, the difference will only grow steeper.
According to The Guardian, a top player on the USMNT would have earned a $108,695 bonus if they had qualified for the 2018 World Cup, which they failed to do. On the other hand, members of the USWNT earned $37,500 apiece for successfully arriving in France.
During qualification, the USWNT earned $3,000 for every win, while the men received $12,500. On top of that, the men play 11 more qualification games than the women.
Each member of the women’s team received $37,500 for making the 23-player World Cup Roster. The men, had they qualified, would have earned $68,750 each.
The gap between the two systems widens significantly once the teams start playing in the World Cup.
The men would have received $6,875 per game, a maximum of $85,599 from group stage points won and an additional $195,652 for advancing to the knockout rounds. The women don’t get any of those bonuses.
Should they win the World Cup, members of the USWNT would receive $110,000 each for lifting the trophy. Assuming the money is divided equally among all 23 players, the men would take home $407,608 apiece.
The women do hold one advantage over the men in terms of bonuses: They would each be promised $60,869 for a four-day victory tour should they win the World Cup. The men would not get paid a bonus for such a tour should they ever win the tournament.
The US Soccer Federation pays its female players fixed salaries, while the men are much more reliant on bonuses. The majority of women on the USWNT earn $100,000 in salaries, and an additional $62,500 to $67,500 if they play in the US Soccer-backed National Women’s Soccer League.
The Federation puts some of the blame on FIFA for the disparity. FIFA gives different prizes for winners of the men’s and women’s World Cup. US Soccer then spreads that money around to its players.
The USWNT filed a lawsuit against US Soccer alleging “institutionalized gender discrimination” in March but has agreed to focus on the World Cup first and enter mediation after the tournament’s conclusion.
A recent Wall Street Journal report pointed out that since it won the World Cup in 2015, the USWNT’s games have garnered more revenue than the US men’s games have. According to the audit, the women generated $50.8 million in revenue between 2016 and 2018, while the men brought in $49.9 million.
Nike CEO Mark Parker said last week that the USWNT’s home jerseys are the top-selling soccer jersey on Nike’s website for a single season in company history, men’s or women’s.