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Editor’s Note: The U.S. Women’s National Soccer Team was scheduled to play a “Victory Tour” match with the Trinidad and Tobago team at Aloha Stadium last Sunday, Dec. 6. The day before the match, during a practice, the U.S. team tweeted and posted photos of stadium field conditions. The U.S. Soccer Federation formally canceled the match via at 7:35 a.m. on the day of the game. All tickets are being refunded, and the citing unsafe conditions and player safety. But the team also didn’t hold any public appearances, only holding a practice nearby where some fans happened to see them. One fan felt compelled to write an open letter to the team and its coach.

To Coach Jill Ellis and the Women’s National Team:

I agree with your public comments that cancelling last Sunday’s game was not about “turf vs. grass.” It is about much more than that – how equality is necessary to protect you, and how that protection also protects your fans from 11^th hour disappointment. But last weekend, those fans, and I count myself among the most loyal, were the ones who were hurt and forgotten in your fight for equality at a time when you need those fans the most.

It is my hope that your time in Hawaii will remind you of the age-old lesson that it’s not whether you win or lose but how — or in this case, whether — you play the game.

Your fans’ love for sports and women in sports remains the same. Watching you win the World Cup elated the whole country. Then, for the first time ever, your announcement to play a Victory Tour match here stunned the state. Fifteen thousand fans raced to buy tickets and organize tailgates. We bought swag.

To find out at the last minute that you cancelled the match was devastating.

While we stand behind you in your fight against the Federation, your choices last weekend left us disappointed.

The failure of U.S. Soccer to inspect the field days, weeks or even months beforehand on your behalf is, in a word, unacceptable. As you said in part in your statement to fans, “At the end of the day, we expect to be treated equally as our male counterparts. And we hope that, in the future, our fields and our venues will be chosen and inspected at the standard of an international match — whether it’s men or women playing on the field.”

But your failure to send someone you trusted or do it yourselves earlier is also unacceptable. Protecting yourselves means proactivity, not just reactivity once you are here. And no protection for your fans upon your decision to cancel, perhaps by a replacement signing or public appearance, is alienating.

The failure of U.S. Soccer to inspect the field well in advance is, in a word, unacceptable. But your failure to send someone you trusted or do it yourselves earlier is also unacceptable.

We, the #bestfansintheworld, are the ones who can, and will, proudly defend you on the front lines and in the back alleys. We are your compatriots, fighting for equality, fighting to close the gender gap, fighting to protect women’s rights — not just in sports, but in every sector of society.

Make no mistake, like so many female workers, I want equal pay and fair, safe conditions for all, athletes and non-athletes, regardless of gender. We simply advocate with pen and paper rather than a soccer ball.

You said you would not have won the World Cup without us. The fact is you won’t win this equality fight without us, either. You need us to bring attention to the issues. You need us to continue to support you, to watch games, to buy tickets, to cheer you on, to change laws and to stand up for you in court. Most importantly, you need the next generation — the ones most impacted by this weekend’s decision — to carry on that fight.

So, no, this was not about turf vs. grass. It was, and continues to be, about more than that. We are fighting the fight with you. Don’t leave us on the sidelines..

Sincerely,

Tiffany L. Gourley, Esq.
Loyal Fan