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The celebration of the Women’s World Cup soccer championship shifts this week from France to New York City. On Wednesday, the U.S. Women’s National Team will be honored with a ticker tape parade and keys to the city, following its 2-0 win over the Netherlands in Sunday’s final in France.

But amid the celebration, the women now turn their focus back to a more serious matter. A gender discrimination lawsuit, filed before the tournament, demands pay equal to that of their male counterparts. And legions of U.S. Women’s National Team supporters say a fourth Women’s World Cup title makes the case even stronger.

Equal pay

In the stadium near Lyon, France, on Sunday, it didn’t take long for the pivot.

From joy to indignation.

As U.S. players hugged and celebrated their hard-earned victory over a tough Dutch team, chants of “equal pay” bubbled up from the stands. There was booing too — for members of FIFA, soccer’s international governing body, which reportedly will pay the U.S. women a $4 million bonus, compared with the $38 million paid to last year’s World Cup winner.

From fans to players, the message was clear.

“To have our ladies represent and show that our soccer program is superior, it should inspire the United States to pay these women what they deserve to be paid,” said Kenneth Lloyd, from Austin, Texas. He watched the game in France with his son and daughter.

Megan Rapinoe, the outspoken U.S. winger, won the Golden Ball award, given to the tournament’s MVP. But after the match, she assumed her other role as outspoken plaintiff in the class action suit filed in March against U.S. Soccer, the sport’s governing body in the United States. The suit was brought by U.S. players, but Rapinoe says everyone at this Women’s World Cup helped push the fight forward.

Equal Pay For Equal Play; The U.S. Women’s Soccer Team Tackles Its Next Quest

Photo: Maja Hitij/Getty Images