Carlos Cordeiro, president of the U.S. Soccer Federation, said at the U.S. Women’s National Team’s ticker-tape parade in New York City that the governing body is “committed to doing right by you” and hinted the women will receive equal pay to the men’s team.
Cordeiro, an unpopular figure among those who believe the women should be paid equally, faced chants from the crowd of “Equal pay” and “Cut the check” as he tried to speak about the federation’s investment in women’s soccer.
“We believe at U.S. Soccer that all female athletes deserve fair and equitable pay,” Cordeiro said to conclude his remarks. “And together, I believe we can get this done.”
“EQUAL PAY! EQUAL PAY!”
— Good Morning America (@GMA) July 10, 2019
Crowds at NYC ticker-tape celebration erupt in equal pay chants during speech by @USSoccer President, Carlos Cordeiro. https://t.co/aI78rPybpB pic.twitter.com/qKFvvKxBcR
Despite his admission, Cordeiro drew criticism online for mispronouncing the last name of captain and leading scorer Megan Rapinoe, saying “RAH-pin-oe” instead of the correct way, “Ruh-PEE-noe.”
Carlos Cordeiro, the president of US Soccer, just pronounced Megan Rapinoe’s last name incorrectly. Her name is Megan Ruh-PEE-no and he called her Megan RAH-pin-no. She busted out into a dance anyway.
— Caitlin Murray (@caitlinmurr) July 10, 2019
AWKWARD: U.S. Soccer President Carlos Cordeiro mispronounced Megan Rapinoe’s name while honoring her during the ticker-tape parade ceremony https://t.co/T7PgvuNpqj #USWNT #ParadeofChampions #WorldCup pic.twitter.com/7C0lgVbLl3
— Eyewitness News (@ABC7NY) July 10, 2019
The women’s team brought a lawsuit against the USSF saying it is violating the U.S. Equal Pay Act and the Civil Rights Act by not paying their players the same as the men’s national team. The lawsuit claims that under the current structure, if both the women’s and men’s teams both played 20 exhibition games, the USSF would pay female players a maximum of $99,000 each while the average man would make $263,320.
• Adam Zielonka can be reached at azielonka@washingtontimes.com.
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