All over the world, professional women athletes are struggling for recognition and for basic needs like equipment, support from national federations and, most importantly, pay equity. In football (in the US, soccer), for example, women are paid a fraction of what their male counterparts earn. For comparison, the United States women’s national team was awarded $2 million for winning the Women’s World Cup in 2015; the year before, the men’s team received $8 million for just making the round of 16. But the imbalance between the genders extends far beyond the issue of equal pay.

Hajra Khan is captain of Pakistan’s national women’s soccer team. This year, her team was forced to withdraw from SAFF—the major regional tournament—because the Pakistan Football Federation claimed they d...