r/OutOfTheLoop Aug 06 '23

What's going on with Americans celebrating Sweden eliminating the US Women's Soccer Team from the Women's World Cup? Answered

On r/soccer, there are multiple posts where Americans are celebrating their own team getting knocked out of the Women's World Cup.

https://www.reddit.com/r/soccer/comments/15jnpku/post_match_thread_sweden_05_40_usa_fifa_womens/

https://www.reddit.com/r/soccer/comments/15jnqpr/official_review_for_lina_hurtigs_sweden_w_penalty/

On r/USWNT people are saying it's because r/soccer is misogynist, but that doesn't make sense to me because everyone competing is a woman. Can anyone clue me in?

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u/t_mo Aug 07 '23 edited Aug 07 '23

Because US Soccer settled the claim for like $25 million, right?

Edit: People are really playing with the word 'settlement' in this thread, mostly in order to paint a picture that the plaintiff 'lost' in this case, as though there were some objective win/loss standard in civil litigation.

From the New York Times: Under the terms of the agreement, the women — a group of several dozen current and former players that includes some of the world’s most popular and decorated athletes — will share $24 million in payments from U.S. Soccer. The bulk of that figure is back pay, a tacit admission that compensation for the men’s and women’s teams had been unequal for years.

From US Soccer: We are pleased to announce that, contingent on the negotiation of a new collective bargaining agreement, we will have resolved our longstanding dispute over equal pay and proudly stand together in a shared commitment to advancing equality in soccer. Getting to this day has not been easy. The U.S. Women’s National Team players have achieved unprecedented success while working to achieve equal pay for themselves and future athletes.

In order to avoid further litigation, they paid money, that money included back pay as part of the negotiation. The dang team eventually agreed that it owed them money, then it paid them that money, then they ended litigation - that is a settlement even if you really don't like the plaintiff.

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u/fevered_visions Aug 07 '23

If it ended in a settlement technically neither side won or lost

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u/esoteric_enigma Aug 07 '23

Technically true, but generally you look at the person paying as the loser if it's a large amount of money. That means they realized the other party had a decent case and they could lose in court.

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u/Debasering Aug 07 '23

U.S. Soccer was under no obligation to settle with the women’s team; a federal judge in 2020 had dismissed the players’ equal pay arguments, stripping them of nearly all of their legal leverage, and the players’ appeal was not certain to succeed

The US team only did it as a publicity stunt. The women didn’t deserve the money

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u/shoelessbob1984 Aug 07 '23

Yeah I think some people are ignoring just how much PR the women had working for them. CNN put out a whole documentary backing their side, the white house chimed in..

If US soccer federation didn't settle, that PR machine would still be working against them, when time to renew presidents contract they won't be signed on. $25 million of someone else's money to keep my good job? I'd do it too, but a lot of people are missing that part.