Canada players wear purple shirts with "Enough is Enough" written on them during the Canadian national anthem before the team's SheBelieves Cup women's soccer match against the United States, Thursday, Feb. 16, 2023, in Orlando, Fla. Members of the Canadian women's soccer team take their fight for pay equity to Parliament today. THE CANADIAN PRESS/AP, Phelan M. Ebenhack
Canada Soccer has released details of its proposed collecting bargaining agreement with the men’s and women’s national teams, saying it’s time to get a deal done.
The move is a pre-emptive strike, before four members of the Canadian women’s soccer team aired their grievances before a parliamentary committee later Thursday.
Canada Soccer says its proposed deal would pay both teams the same amount for playing a match, with both squads sharing equally in competition prize money.
Canada Soccer says the women’s team would become the second-highest-paid women’s national squad among FIFA’s 211 member associations, presumably behind the top-ranked U.S.
But it acknowledges that equal pay does not mean equal dollars when it comes to team budgets, saying the competitive calendar and FIFA World Cup qualification pathway for the men comes with “very different costs” than that of the women.
And Canada Soccer says Canadian Soccer Business, which markets its broadcast and sponsorship rights, is willing to amend its controversial agreement with the governing body.
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This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 9, 2023.
