Secured Landmark Equal-Pay Settlement for Current and Former USWNT Members

In a global-headline-grabbing matter of first impression—applying the Equal Pay Act and Title VII equal-pay requirements to female athletes in a professional team sport, we lodged a class action for current and former World Cup-winning USWNT players against their employer, USSF, for equal pay and working conditions to their USMNT counterparts. Along with much of the world, the USMNT players expressed their deep support for their female counterparts throughout this litigation.

In April 2021, we led the players’ negotiations, and the court approved a widely reported class settlement of the equal-working-conditions claims that ensures the players equal conditions to the USMNT, including in travel, accommodations, playing surfaces, and staff and medical support.

In February 2022, the parties reached a settlement (noted by Am Law in its “Litigator of the Week” column) of the remaining equal-pay claims—for US$24M in damages, US$2M in a benefit fund for class members, and for equal pay for all future matches, including World Cup games—that is a landmark win for the gender-equality and equal-pay movements. LFG (the players’ rallying cry) is an HBO documentary about the players’ hard-fought battle, in which Jeffrey Kessler  and  Cardelle Spangler  appear prominently. In January 2023, final settlement approval was granted and attorneys’ fees were approved.