There has been much debate in recent years about women’s and men’s sports, specifically in regard to pay. Many on the left argue that women should be compensated equally with men, despite the differences in ticket sales, viewership, and skill level.
Unfortunately, the revenue simply doesn’t exist in women’s sports to pay the same as men’s sports. Revenue comes from viewership, television deals, and ticket sales, among other things. If no one is interested in the product, there isn’t money available to pay players.
A perfect example is the WNBA. Despite being forced on an unwilling public for over twenty years, the league still plays in mostly empty arenas and with extremely low television viewership. Subsequently, the NBA has to supplement the league so it can stay afloat.
None of this is the fault of the women playing the sports. Women’s sports can be compelling viewing, but the honest truth is men’s sports are more interesting, thus selling more tickets and generating more revenue. Women’s soccer, spearheaded by leftist activist Megan Rapinoe, finally achieved equal pay with the men’s team and promptly face-planted at the World Cup earlier this year.
It had long been rumored that the USWNT had lost several years earlier to a team of under 14 boys. While this certainly doesn’t help their case for equal pay, apparently, it really happened. Former USWNT star Carli Lloyd admitted on social media earlier this week that the team did indeed lose to young teenage boys.
Lloyd was asked on X: “If it’s true you lost to a bunch of 15 year old boys?” She honestly replied: “Yes it’s true. I know…thousands of people have already brought that up. They were good. We actually lost to a youth Bayern Munich team in my career as well but then we went on to win Olympics and World Cups.”
The two-time Olympic gold medalist correctly pointed out that the squad went on to win at the Olympics and World Cup despite the loss to the boy’s team. The matchup was considered informal, and the team used it as a tune-up for the Women’s World Cup.
Lloyd made waves during the recent World Cup with her criticism of the team’s actions in the wake of the disappointing results, and she also pulled no punches talking about the loss to the boys. She continued: “They should beat us. Bigger, stronger, faster! Boys always gave us a run for our money! It was great prep.”
Lloyd was the consummate competitor during her playing days, scoring 134 goals during her time with the USWNT. However, she is also brutally honest and willing to admit that women simply cannot compete with men on the playing field.
She talked about her competitive drive: “When I first started out with the National Team in 2005, my two main goals were to be the most complete soccer player I could be and to help the team win championships. Every single day I stepped out onto the field, I played as if it was my last game. I never wanted to take anything for granted, especially knowing how hard it is to get to the top, but even harder to stay at the top for so long.”
Carli Lloyd represented her country with class and dignity, unlike others who played alongside her. She has also been brutally honest with her criticisms of the direction of the program and the quality of play on the world stage.
Perhaps women’s sports would be taken more seriously if more of the high-profile competitors were like Carli Lloyd and were willing to be honest about the level of competition.
Featured image screen grab from embedded YouTube video
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