Former US women’s soccer star Hope Solo has blasted Megan Rapinoe over the $24 million “equal pay” settlement between U.S. Women’s National Team and the U.S. Soccer Federation.
Solo accused Rapinoe of selling out the USWNT by making the “infuriating” deal.
She charged Rapinoe with cashing in while neglecting other interests.
“This settlement is not a ‘huge win’,” Solo said.
“It’s heartbreaking and infuriating.
“A ‘promise’ of equal pay from the Federation and back pay for a select group of players isn’t equal pay and it’s not what this fight was about.”
She went on to say the settlement is “Contingent upon the negotiation of a new collective bargaining agreement.
“It doesn’t exist yet and is not guaranteed.”
“If the players had ever been successful in negotiating an equal CBA, there would’ve been no reason to sue the Federation in the first place.
“Throughout the entire process, Megan Rapinoe and Alex Morgan were the two most agreeable with the Federation and to this day, continue to accept terms that are nowhere near what we set out to do.”
“They both know this is not a win.
“They know it’s an easy way out of a fight they were never really in,” she said.
The settlement will see U.S. Soccer pay the USWNT players $24 million and promise equal pay with the men’s team going forward.
Rapinoe said: “In the end, it came together.
“For us as players, I’m just so proud of the way we stuck together and really just kind of put our foot down.
“This is a huge win for us.
“We’re going to look back on this day and say this is the moment US Soccer changed for the better.
“We can’t go back and undo the injustices that we’ve faced.
“The only justice coming out of this is that we know that something like this is never going to happen again and we can move forward in making soccer the best sport that we possibly can in this country and setting up the next generation so much better than we ever had it.
“For us, this is just a huge win in ensuring that we not only right the wrongs of the past but set the next generation up for something that we could only have dreamed of.
“This is a huge win for all women.
“I think we’re going to see that in the coming days and hopefully this will be a day we look back on in a number of years when we’re a little bit older and say that’s the moment that everything changed.
“For our generation, knowing that we’re going to leave the game in an exponentially better place than when we found it is everything.
“That’s what it’s all about because, to be honest, there is no justice in all of this if we don’t make sure it never happens again.”
“When we win, everyone wins,” Rapinoe said on social media.
“It’s really what we set out to do, equalize on all fronts, and we’ve been able to achieve that,” USWNT star Alex Morgan said.
“It’s a really proud moment for all of us.”
“Being in a contentious litigation with our players is not good for our sport,” USSF president Cindy Parlow Cone said.
She added: “I think this is a momentous occasion.
“This is a huge win for soccer, this is a huge win for U.S. Soccer, the players, of women’s sport, and I’m just so excited to move forward together and actually start working with the women’s team to grow the game both here at home and abroad.”
U.S. Soccer and @USWNT are proudly standing together in a shared commitment to advancing equality in soccer. pic.twitter.com/Sp8q7NY0Up
— U.S. Soccer (@ussoccer) February 22, 2022
“Something like this is never going to happen again and we can move forward in making soccer the best sport we possibly can in this country…”@alexmorgan13, @mPinoe and the president of the US Soccer Federation live as the @USWNT wins their fight for equal pay. pic.twitter.com/uV2nNh7WAE
— Good Morning America (@GMA) February 22, 2022
“It’s a really amazing day. I think we’re going to look back on this day and say this is the moment that, you know, U.S. Soccer changed for the better.” — @mPinoe on the #USWNT reaching a historic agreement in gender discrimination case. https://t.co/kWY5S6eOU4 pic.twitter.com/k6Wf2rx9qM
— Good Morning America (@GMA) February 22, 2022
