Playing "like a girl" unfortunately means winning more and being paid less.
But clothing company Title Nine is trying to help make a difference when it comes to pay equity. The business' Instagram account announced Wednesday, July 28, that it will be giving $1 million to the United States Women's National Team Players to "help close the pay gap." On top of the company's donation, Title Nine will also establish a Kick In for Equal Pay Fund, "a financial resource that the USWNTPA will have at its disposal in ongoing efforts to fight for equal pay."
"We will match contributions up to an additional $250,000 because it takes all of us to make the change we want to see," the caption read. "Join the fight at kickinforequalpay.com."
The video that the business posted began by saying, "Despite winning more games and earning more revenue, US Women's Soccer was paid $64 million less than the men." Founder and CEO of Title Nine Missy Park addressed the inequity in the video.
"The wage gap is real," she began. "It affects all of us. It just so happens that the Women's National Soccer Team is emblematic of this much larger issue. There's something we all can do."
"Yeah, we're giving a million dollars, but there's a million ways to make a difference," the CEO continued. "You can go, you can watch and you can give. Because in the end, money matters. And solving the pay gap is going to be a team sport. But together, we can all get it. So let's go."
Title Nine's generous gift comes amid the U.S. Women's National Team's lawsuit against the U.S. Soccer Federation, suing them for equal pay. Their legal battle was documented in HBO Max's film, LFG, aka the team's saying "Let's f--king go," which Missy referenced at the end of the video. In the trailer for the documentary, many of the players described the unfair pay and resources they get in comparison to the men's team.
Player Jessica McDonald even revealed that she coaches on top of being on the soccer team "to make ends meet." As she explained, "Childcare is more than my paychecks."
While Judge Gary Klausner dismissed the lawsuit in May 2020, the women's team appealed the decision on Friday, July 23, per CNN.
Of the decision, player Molly Levinson told CNN, "If a woman has to work more than a man and be much more successful than him to earn about the same pay, that is decidedly not equal pay and it violates the law."
She continued, "And yet, that is exactly what the women players on the US National team do – they play more games and achieve better results in order to be paid about the same amount as the men's national team players per game. By any measure, that is not equal pay, and it violates federal law."