The rise of female UFC fighters obscures profound exploitation, inequality

  The mixed martial arts pay-per-view event UFC 261 features two bouts that would have been unheard of just 10 years ago.

  Russian-born Valentina Shevchenko will fight Jessica Andrade, a Brazilian and an out lesbian, for the women’s flyweight title on April 24, 2021. That same night, Rose Namajunas, an American of Lithuanian descent, will square off against Zhang Weili, who has caused the popularity of the UFC to surge in her native China, for the women’s strawweight title.

The U.S. Women’s Soccer Team is fighting for better pay and the rest of women’s sports depends on it

  When it comes to iconic U.S. soccer teams, none tops the 1999 U.S. Women’s National Team. That squad is still so special today because its tournament run, culminating in a shootout victory over China before a huge crowd in Pasadena’s Rose Bowl, created a wave of change that led to more funding and resources for the women’s national team as well as the founding of the first North American women’s soccer league.

  When asked about the ‘99ers, as they’re known, at U.S. Soccer media day last month, forward Alex Morgan simply replied: “Now it’s our turn to make our mark.”