Sweden’s men’s national football team on Friday said that they would play the remainder of their matches this year
without pay in order to support the women’s national team’s demand for equal
pay. “Will forgo all financial compensation for their autumn matches…to make it possible to coordinate negotiations with the women’s team,” a statement on the Swedish Football Association’s website read, reported AFP

According to a report in AFP, Sweden’s Equality Ombudsman – a government agency that promotes equal rights and combats
discrimination — last month ruled that the association had not discriminated
against the women’s team by paying them lower wages than their male
counterparts.

Real Madrid’s Kosovare Asllani said in an Instagram post on
Thursday that equal pay was “about respect”, and noted Sweden’s
reputation as a longstanding champion of gender equality.

“Gender equality
is also one of the Swedish Football Association’s core values,” she
wrote.

She said the women’s team was paid 24 % of what the men’s team
received in 2018-19.

“And when we won the (World Cup) bronze last year we
got 10 percent of what the men got when they made it to the quarterfinals.”

Brazil
on Wednesday joined Australia, Norway and New Zealand on the list of football
associations who had publicly committed to paying their men and women players
the same amount for earning a senior cap.

England has also done so since
January. In March 2019, the US women’s team, the current world champions, sued
their federation alleging discrimination over pay and conditions. A judge
dismissed their case in May this year but the team have appealed that ruling.