Landon Donovan on US Soccer: 'The Women Deserve to Make More Money'

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iStock/Thinkstock(NEW YORK) — Landon Donovan may have accidentally found his new calling.

The iconic soccer star has been calling games for Sprint and the Copa America tournament earlier this month and the feedback has been tremendous from soccer fans.

Chile won in the Copa finals over Argentina last week, but before the big game, Donovan spoke to ABC News about this new chapter.

“I lived in a time in U.S. Soccer when nobody cared about any of this stuff,” he said candidly. “Now, when Fox calls and says, ‘We want you to commentate,’ it’s really exciting. … I got pretty good feedback and they asked if I wanted to keep doing it.”

The 34-year-old isn’t sure yet if this is his path, but he’s enjoying commentating on the matches and “I think I can improve. … I’m keeping the option open.”

Donovan said Sprint sponsored the Copa tournament and had special signings at fan headquarters, along with other technological partnerships to elevate the excitement for the loyal viewers.

“My motto for soccer in this country is progress not perfection,” Donovan said. “These things take time. Other sports, other leagues, other teams have taken 50, 60, 70 years. … We just need time. When you look at how far we’ve come, it’s really impressive.”

Heading into the 2016 Olympic Games later this summer, Donovan picked the U.S. women as his favorites.

“The crazy thing is they will have a number of players who won’t make the roster but would probably be the best player on any other team in the world,” he added. “Players being cut that would be absolute stars on other teams.”

When the topic of equal pay came up, he said, “I’m not privy to everything that goes on. These things are very complicated, they are never black and white.”

“But my personal opinion is that I do believe the women deserve to make more money, no question,” he continued. “How much more is based on how you negotiate and use leverage to position yourself. The women deserve everything they get. I hope they stay strong and fight for what they want.”

The U.S. Women’s team filed a wage-discrimination action against the U.S. Soccer Federation with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission in March, citing that they make upwards of 25 percent less than some of the men.

The U.S. women took home gold in the last Summer Games in 2012, held in the U.K.

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