At Michigan, softball has had more success than baseball, we have more visibility on campus, we sell out every game and have been much more popular [than men's baseball] in Ann Arbor. But the attention and the hoopla for the men when they made their 2019 College World Series run was triple what we receive for ours. Now, to be fair, my athletic director treats me very well. I am on my third contract here. But every contract I have signed, all but the latest of which was with a prior athletic director, was only because they offered our baseball coach a contract, and I had to speak out and seek equity. The current athletic director has definitely stepped up, and Michigan softball is now treated much better than women's sports in most places. We are an outlier.

[The Michigan sports program had no comment.]

DR. AGHA: Coach Hutch gives a perfect example of decision makers who value men's sport over women's. It leads to unequal treatment, which leads to further inequities in revenue and wages. We see the same in the media, with broadcasters and websites giving far less attention to women's sports. Imagine how successful women's sports would be if decision makers, of any gender, chose to invest in women's sports equal to their investment in men's.

Closing the gap

WSJ: If revenue disparities are a major driver of pay disparities, how can women's sports make more money? Do we need to build a larger female fan base?

DR. MATHESON: It's not incumbent on female fans to take a greater interest in women's teams. It's about all sports fans taking an interest. The single biggest thing any person can do to promote pay equity in sports is become a women's sports fan. Go to the 2023 Women's World Cup in Australia, watch some WNBA games on TV, or buy a ticket to see Coach Hutch's team try to win a record 22nd Big Ten Championship.

MS. HUTCHINS: As far as professional sport, clearly we need to increase the fan base and interest. What if the media gave as much attention to Sue Bird, or any of the WNBA players, as it does LeBron James? Women's national soccer does everything better than the men's team, yet they have to file a lawsuit for equal pay.

DR. AGHA: Despite starting decades after male leagues and then years of unequal access to media, sponsors, marketing, PR, government subsidies, broadcasting income and long-term owner/investors, women's leagues have fared remarkably well -- for example, the WNBA drew higher ratings and attendance than Major League Soccer for many years. Imagine how successful women's sports would be if decision makers chose to invest in women's sports equal to their investment in men's. There is no reason to doubt they could be equally profitable if given the same opportunities.

Mr. Akst is a writer in New York's Hudson Valley. He can be reached at reports@wsj.com.

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

10-27-20 1014ET