Separate but Equal?

The U.S. national women’s soccer team is suing its parent federation for gender discrimination.  Among other charges, the women contend that the United States Soccer Federation offers them inferior compensation and training facilities in comparison to the men’s team.

 

The U.S. women’s team enjoys the kind of success and popularity of the leading men’s teams, yet the U.S. men’s team is paid better and treated better.  This would seem to be a slam-dunk for women, but I wonder about unintended consequences.

 

If the women argue they generate the lion’s share of interest and revenue in the U.S., can that argument then be turned around against women’s basketball, golf and tennis?  Ratings for women’s soccer is one thing, that for the other sports quite another (and lower).  And, if we’re having one of those proverbial conversations, is it possible that a win in court by the women’s soccer team will have the unintended effect of reviving the notion of separate-but-equal? 

 

Only now it would be applied to sports.