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Co-author of Soccernomics Stefan Szymanski argues that one way of addressing the huge gender pay gap in football is to divert money from the men’s game into women’s football.
It is no secret that a gargantuan pay gap, cut along gender lines, exists in elite sport. On Forbes’ list of the world’s highest-paid athletes in 2020, US Open champion Naomi Osaka is the top-earning woman at 29 on the chart. Serena Williams down in number 33 is the only other woman in the top 100.
That both are tennis players is not surprising. Thanks to a campaign spearheaded by Billie Jean King, who threatened to boycott the defence of her US Open title in 1973, male and female champions are now awarded the same amount for a Grand Slam win.
A chasm still exists off the court in the form of endorsement deals. Williams may have won more Grand Slam titles than Roger Federer, but the estimated $32 million she has received from sponsors this year is dwarfed by the $100 million Federer has raked in. With a racquet in hand at least, all competitors are commensurately compensated for their exploits in the biggest tournaments.
This article was initially published at NewFrame
