Hollywood stars Sandra Bullock and Tracy Morgan used the stage at the ESPY Awards Wednesday to push for “equal pay” for the U.S. National Women’s Soccer Team.
Bullock presented the “Best Team” award to the U.S. Women’s team during the annual sports awards show. Team co-captains Carli Lloyd and Megan Rapinoe received the award on behalf of the team, but as she handed the mic to Lloyd, Bullock said, “All those in favor of equal pay, say I.”
The soccer stars kept their remarks short, according to the Hollywood Reporter, and after their address, ESPY host Tracy Morgan added, “Let’s pay these ladies and let’s fight cancer.”
The 28 players of the women’s team already took matters of equal pay into their own hands by filing a federal class-action lawsuit against the U.S. Soccer Federation to try and force the league to pay the male and female players the same.
The U.S. Women’s National Team did not join the suit, but has released a statement in support of the filing.
The winning team also made “equal pay” an issue during the Women’s World Cup in France which ended last week with the U.S. team taking the top prize. For instance, when the U.S. team scored the tournament-winning goal, some in the crowd erupted in chants of “equal pay.”
Women’s team star Alex Morgan also took home an ESPY award winning the best female athlete award. Upon taking possession of the award, she joked, “Sorry, but this is probably the second-best trophy we won this week.”
Follow Warner Todd Huston on Twitter @warnerthuston.
COMMENTS
Please let us know if you're having issues with commenting.