A Greater Goal:The Epic Battle for Equal Pay in Women's Soccer-and Beyond
A Greater Goal by Elizabeth Rusch
Reviewed by Karla Castro, Walter Do, Dominika Enea, Nicole Ferry
Review:
Elizabeth Rusch’s A Greater Goal speaks on the U.S Women's National Soccer Team and their experience of being consistently underpaid due to the jarring wage gap set for women throughout the world. Rusch tells the story of the history of the U.S Women's National Team and their long, strenuous fight towards equal pay for not only themselves, but also the generations of women to come after them.
The team started with three young women with a passion for the game; Mia Hamm, Julie Foudy, and Kristine Lilly. These women were known as “the Title IX babies”. Title IX refers to the federal law created in 1972 that prohibits any educational program from sex discrimination that receives federal funding. In 1980, a young girl known as Danielle Schulz, learned of this law and decided to make a change for all the other young women with an interest in the sport. In 1982, Dani graduated high school and was invited to play on a U.S team, with the hope that one day women would have a place within the professional level.
Three years later, and fifty-five years after the creation of the U.S National Team built for men, the first ever U.S Women's National Team came to be. The mid 1980’s brought on the beginning of not only the first woman’s national soccer team, but also the start of a long path to equal pay for women's professional athletes. From the beginning, women were underpaid and overworked in comparison to the Men’s National Team. At the time, “women in the United States made on average about sixty to seventy-five cents for every dollar men earned” (12). Women on the team were not earning enough to even make soccer their main source of income. While the U.S Men’s National Team earned more than enough, Women who played in the same tournaments, practiced the same amount of hours, and traveled the same amount as the men’s team, were forced to find a second source of income or “retire early” due to financial troubles. Women were underpaid and overworked for the same amount of time and effort a man did and yet, the road to change was far from over.
The novel brings forward the chilling disparity of not only pay, but also treatment of players, medical benefits, and equal respect for the woman. It is a tribute to not only the women within the sport, but all women who have dealt with any and all forms of inequality to the male’s around them. The novel is a fight for all women and a reminder for the world that equality is a human right regardless of gender. It is a testament to the strong woman who fought to be paid for the same work a man could do and pushed back against those who tried to silence them into compliance. A Greater Goal is a motivating story of a team of women that fought to make their dreams as a little girl a reality and to prove to the world that just because they are a woman does not mean they deserve any less than a man.
Biography:
Elizabeth Rusch is an American author and journalist dedicated to making complex topics accessible to children and young adults. Born on October 14, 1966, in New York City, she developed a love for reading and writing, eventually majoring in economics at Duke University. Rusch began her career at Teacher Magazine, where she honed her skills in turning complex ideas into engaging prose.
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Instructional Resources:
- Male vs Female Professional Sports Salary Comparison: An article published on the Adelphi University of New York website provides a general overview of the pay difference between men and women in various professional sports in the US as of 2023. This can be used as a simple and quick demonstration of how this phenomenon occurring in the book isn't limited to the soccer field. The side-by-side comparison provided within also allows for students to visualize the trend progression that is less easier to track in the gradual mentioning of the book.
- How Brandi Chastain is fighting for pay equity decades after her USWNT days | Equal Pay Pioneers: A 22-minute video by ESPN interviewing former USWNT soccer player, Braindi Chastain. The interview discusses the fight for equal pay throughout her career and comments on recent events as of 2023. Chastain shares her personal sentiment and experience that have not been explored in the book. This video will allow students to name a face and to realize that everything happening within the book is all tied to real living women.
- Highlights of Women's Earning in 2023: An annual report of women’s earnings published by the US Bureau of Labor Statistics. This report compares five main aspects: gender, age, race/ethnicity, education, and occupation in 2023. This data set allows for student understanding that the gender pay gap isn’t only influenced by one specific factor, but it is a result of an intersectionality of factors combined. The book constantly references different wage gaps for women of different demographics as examples. It can be used for comparison to draw further discussion on trends and how things might have changed since they were mentioned in the book. It also allows students to relate to the different categories the data set points to with the women in their lives, just as the book intends to call for.
- Facts About Equal Pay and Compensation Discrimination: A short fact list published by the EEOC(US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission). These are law titles that were frequently referenced throughout the book as the bases of their complaints. This article can give students a more detailed insight into what these titles specifically stand for and how they can be enforced; as well as for students to be able to make the connection between laws and actual implementations in policies, drawing connections to how they can specifically apply to the gender-based wage gap.
- Gender Equality in 2025: A report produced by the UN Women and the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs. It points out some of the key aspects that are not exactly wage gap specific, but highly related. Although these aspects mentioned might not directly address the pressing issue of the wage gap, they can be seen as the byproduct of the gender-based wage gap. It is a statistical report that opens up grounds for discussion among students, as well as further exploration on how the wage gap is interlinked with all aspects of a capitalist economy. It is the bigger picture that the book is trying to point to.
- Lessons for the Private Sector from Equal Pay Wins in Sport: An article published by the UN Women that comprises different equal pay wins in sports from nations around the world, and how that affected company policies around the world. The book mentioned how companies reacted to their fight for equal pay, and this short list provided a more concise visualization of the butterfly effect it has caused.
- The Controversial 2023 Nobel Prize Explained(02:46–12:51): A 10-minute video about the 2023 Nobel Prize winner of Economics, Claudia Goldin, and her work on the gender pay gap. It covers some areas that the book failed to address that are equally important in the discussion of the gender-based pay gap. Students will learn the full picture of the narrative, understand the perspective of the author, and how that might contribute to bias.
- Equal Pay in Sports: Why is it not equal?: An article published in the UK delves deep into the “why” of the gender pay gap, specifically for the professional sports industry. It is set to clarify the difference between equal pay and the gender pay gap. It also discusses the nuance of the professional sports industry as an industry, and how it might not fit into regular labor regulations due to its qualities as “like work.” It helps students to understand the unique position the professional sports industry holds in the general conversation of the gender-based pay gap.
Instructional Activity:
Preview:
The goal of this lesson is to explore the connection and timeline of events shown in A Greater Goal that lead to equal pay for the U.S. Women’s Nation Soccer League. Analyzes of specific events will allow students to draw deeper connections to the dialogue of the assigned event. Working in a team will promote the connectivity amongst students building on their ability to build on each other’s ideas and understand different perspectives. Creating a timeline of events as a class will allow for a more focused understanding of the effect of the action people take and the consequences of those actions. It will also allow for deeper analysis of the novel by simplifying the timeline of events drawing a closer understanding of the end goal.
California Common Core Standards:
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RH.9-10.2
Determine the central ideas or information of a primary or secondary source; provide an accurate summary of how key events or ideas develop over the course of the text.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RH.9-10.3
Analyze in detail a series of events described in a text; determine whether earlier events caused later ones or simply preceded them.
Resources and Preparation:
Resources:
Cause and Effect Chain Worksheet
Preparation:
1. Creation of Groups and Assignment of Events
Group and Event Distribution Guide
2. Poster Paper with Flowchart and Index Cards with name of events
Instructional Plan:
The Cause and Effect Timeline is to be done in the span of two-three class periods, depending on time constraints, after finishing the novel as a whole.
DAY ONE
Introduction: Take 20 minutes to analyze the conclusion of the novel and address the end goal of the U.S. Women’s Soccer team to achieve equal pay.
During this time, ask students a fundamental question: What does
equal pay mean to you?Take a couple of responses from students
Assignment and Groups: Assign Groups that are made prior to class period and give handouts to each group.
Each group should receive one worksheet per team
Assign a specific monumental event that lead to Equal Pay in the novel to each group
Group Discussion: Each group will take 40 minutes to analyze their event and fill out the worksheet.
- As students are discussing amongst themselves ensure that each team is made aware that assistance is available to them.
As ensure that each team includes quotes from the book and creates their own cause and effect flowchart.
Conclusion: Make an announcement that each group is to present their findings in the next class in a short presentation.
DAY TWO - DAY THREE
Introduction: A long sheet of white paper with a flowchart drawn will be placed in the whiteboard at the beginning of class
There should be enough boxes for each event that was assigned to the group
There should also be a notecard with the name of their event that they can place in a box in the flowchart after their presentation that will create one cohesive timeline after all presentations are over.
Group Presentations: Each group will have 10 mins to explain their event, what led to that event, and what was its effect.
- Each group should include textual evidence
After their presentation, students should place their notecard with the name of their event on the correct box in the flowchart
Class Analyzes: After all groups have presented, focus on the overall flowchart of events.
Review the flowchart with the class and create an understanding of the work and sacrifices that people like the U.S. Women’s Soccer team face in order to fight for that they believe is right and just
Bibliography:
This source displays the history timeline of the start of the U.S Womans National Soccer Team as well as their accomplishments throughout time.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qVy5nm6v3FU
This source displays a video in which CBS News speaks on the long fight for the WNST and the news of the settlement and what the future holds for young women.
“Equal Pay in Sports: Why is It Not Equal?” SportSquabble, 22 September 2023, https://sportsquabble.com/equal-pay-in-sports/.
“Facts About Equal Pay and Compensation Discrimination.” EEOC, 15 January 1997, https://www.eeoc.gov/laws/guidance/facts-about-equal-pay-and-compensation-discrimination.
“Gender Equality in 2025: Gains, Gaps, and the $342T Choice.” UN Women, 16 September 2025, https://www.unwomen.org/en/articles/explainer/gender-equality-in-2025-gains-gaps-and-the-342t-choice.
“Male vs Female Professional Sports Salary Comparison”. Adelphi University. (23 October 2023). https://online.adelphi.edu/articles/male-female-sports-salary/.
“How Brandi Chastain is Fighting for Pay Equity Decades after Her USWNT Days | Equal Pay Pioneers.” Youtube, uploaded by ESPN, 29 August 2023, www.youtube.com/watch?v=5QE4GXooUcg.
“Highlights of Women’s Earnings in 2023” U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, August 2024. https://www.bls.gov/opub/reports/womens-earnings/2023/home.htm.
“Lessons for the Private Sector from Equal Pay Wins in Sport.” UN Women, 18 September 2025, https://www.unwomen.org/en/articles/explainer/lessons-for-the-private-sector-from-equal-pay-wins-in-sport.
“The Controversial 2023 Nobel Prize Explained.” YouTube, uploaded by Economics Explained, 29 October 2023, www.youtube.com/watch?v=iz3HRqg6Q4A.
