U.S. Soccer reaches milestone agreement to pay its women's and men's teams equally

The U.S. Soccer Federation reached milestone agreements pay its men's and women's teams equally, making the American national governing body the first in the sport to promise both sexes matching money.

The federation announced on Wednesday separate collective bargaining agreements through December 2028 with the unions for both national teams, ending years of often acrimonious negotiations.

The men have been playing under the terms of a CBA that expired in December 2018. The women's CBA expired at the end of March but talks continued after the federation and the players agreed to settle a gender discrimination lawsuit brought by some of the players in 2019. The settlement was contingent on the federation reaching labor contracts that equalized pay and bonuses between the two teams.