Christen Press is slated to receive the biggest payout from the $24 million equal pay settlement reached between the U.S. women’s national team and the U.S. Soccer Federation.
In 2019, a group of USWNT players, including Alex Morgan and Megan Rapinoe, filed a gender discrimination lawsuit against U.S. Soccer. They reached a deal with the national federation in February, with a final approval hearing set for Dec. 5.
A new court filing from the USWNT players, obtained by The Athletic’s Meg Linehan, lays out the proposed amount each player will receive in the settlement. The settlement will include a lump sum of $22 million in back pay to be distributed among eligible USWNT members.
Press, who has played in 155 matches for the national team in her career, is set to receive $643,873 after attorneys’ fees and costs, per the list of proposed amounts in Tuesday’s court filing. That amount stands as the highest among the 72 players on the list.
While some of the players will not receive any money due to NCAA eligibility or other reasons, per Linehan, nearly half (34) of the players on the list are in line to receive six-figure payouts – including goalkeeper Hope Solo, who has objected to the settlement.
Twelve players are slated to earn more than $500,000 in back pay, per the proposed list, all of them among the stars on the 2019 World Cup squad.
The lawsuit that led to this settlement came months before that team won the title in France. “Equal pay!” chants became the soundtrack of the victory parade. And when the team competes at the 2023 World Cup in Australia and New Zealand, they’ll do so with their equal pay settlement and collective bargaining agreement in hand.
Top 12 proposed USWNT player payouts
- Christen Press, forward – $643,873
- Julie Ertz, midfielder – $640,677
- Becky Sauerbrunn, defender – $640,324
- Carli Lloyd, forward – $639,273
- Ashlyn Harris, goalkeeper – $608,781
- Kelley O’Hara, defender – $606,258
- Tobin Heath, forward – $604,321
- Alex Morgan, forward – $594,233
- Alyssa Naeher, goalkeeper – $593,714
- Ali Krieger, defender – $582,411
- Megan Rapinoe, forward – $565,917
- Morgan Brian, midfielder – $549,582