U.S. star sees disparity in Women’s World Cup

FRISCO, TEXAS With the Women’s World Cup less than eight months away, U.S. national team midfielder Megan Rapinoe is dismayed by what she sees as ongoing issues of inequality in soccer.

From uncertainty about the use of video review and the amount of prize money, to scheduling other tournament finals on the same day as the championship game, equity issues are getting more attention as the World Cup looms.

From Rapinoe’s standpoint, that’s symptomatic of the short shrift paid to the women’s game by FIFA, soccer’s governing body.

“And that’s not to say they (FIFA) don’t do anything. They obviously do things for the women’s game. But in the way that they truly care about the men’s game, they don’t truly care about the women’s game,” she said.

The United States qualified for the World Cup on Sunday night with a victory over Jamaica in the semifinals of the CONCACAF women’s championship tournament. The top three finishers earn spots in the World Cup, so the U.S. and Canada secured berths with semifinal victories.

The two teams will play each other in the championship match Wednesday night.

FIFA has been criticized for scheduling the Women’s World Cup final on the same day as the men’s Copa America final and the CONCACAF Gold Cup final.

There have been calls for FIFA to use VAR, or Video Assistant Referees, at the tournament in France. VAR was used at the men’s World Cup for the first time in Russia.

Prize money has been an issue since 2015, when the U.S. women’s team received US$2 million for winning the World Cup, out of a pool of $15 million. By comparison, the prize pool for the men’s World Cup in Russia was $400 million.

FIFA’s Chief Women’s Football Officer Sarai Bareman responded to some of the criticism last week when the organization released its first-ever global strategy for women’s soccer. The wide-ranging policy seeks to grow the women’s game overall — and one aim is to get more women involved in the decision-making processes at all levels.

Rapinoe is not alone. Alex Morgan and Becky Sauerbrunn have also publicly addressed some of the controversies.

ANDY JACOBSOHN/THE ASSOCIATED PRESS United States forward Megan Rapinoe scores a goal while being defended by Jamaica defender Konya Plummer during a CONCACAF World Cup qualifying match in Frisco, Texas on Sunday. The Americans won the game to secure their place in the World Cup. Canada also qualified.