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They come to our town Wednesday, to a parade through the Canyon of Heroes, as much a cultural phenomenon as four-time World Cup champions.

That’s the way it always seems to be for the U.S. women’s soccer players, who spun our heads for the first time back in 1999 and now dictate social and political debate wherever they happen to land.

Equal pay. Gay rights. The man in the White House. And, by the way, there was that victory over the Netherlands on Sunday in the Cup final. This is a transcendent bunch, a group that empowers women, even while demoralizing and humbling female opponents.

“I feel like this team is in the midst of changing the world around us as we live and it’s just an incredible feeling, really,” Megan Rapinoe said.

It’s funny how these things work. When the tournament campaign started, it was Alex Morgan who was the face of this team. She was in all the ads, on the cover of all the magazines. But somewhere along the way these past weeks, this became Rapinoe’s story.

It was Rapinoe who scored the biggest goals, who converted the three penalty kicks, who flew down the left side of the field with abandon, who made everyone worry about her hamstring. It was Rapinoe who celebrated that goal against Thailand with the greatest zeal, attracting worldwide scorn — except at home, where it mattered. It was Rapinoe who sparred most defiantly with the president of the United States, announcing in the most explicit terms she would not visit his current place of residence.

When the American fans in Lyon chanted, “Equal pay,” after the win on Sunday, at the championship ceremony, it was Rapinoe who championed that cause again, who reveled in their words. Now you can be sure that same chant will arise on Wednesday, when Rapinoe and the others ride past the city crowds and under the ticker tape.

The USWNT is on a victory tour that'll lead them along the Canyon of Heroes for a championship parade.
The USWNT is on a victory tour that’ll lead them along the Canyon of Heroes for a championship parade.

“I love it,” Rapinoe said. “The movement is swelling before our very eyes. This is what the people want. Give the people what they want.”

The team featured other sporting heroines in France, of course, and all of them deserve this parade. Morgan scored six goals, including a very big one in the tough semifinal against England. Rose Lavelle, the Midwest kid, will go down as the best discovery by coach Jill Ellis, a balletic lightning bolt, dancing through defenses and notching that clinching second golazzo in the final. The much-doubted goalkeeper, Alyssa Naeher, proved up to the task when she was seriously challenged by France and England. Hope who?

And then there is Ellis, the underpaid coach. She was making one-tenth of Jurgen Klinsmann’s $3 million salary after winning the 2015 World Cup, even while the U.S. men under Klinsmann were busy stumbling their way out of the 2018 qualifiers. Ellis deserves more money, and a lot of apologies, for those who complained she wasn’t much of a tactician. Throughout the month, she stuck to her basic 11-woman lineup, her 4-3-3 formation, while finding enough time for the other players to prevent a revolt. Maybe Carli Lloyd wasn’t happy about her playing time, but she knew enough to keep complaints to a whisper.

Even if there were no issues inside this roster, there were still plenty outside of it. The campaigns continue. The women head to mediation soon in an effort to gain pay hikes from U.S. Soccer. They will receive about $260,000 apiece in bonus money for winning the World Cup, which includes payment for a four-game victory tour. If the American men had won the World Cup — hard to do, since they didn’t qualify — they would have earned a $1.1 million bonus.

FIFA is even more guilty than U.S. Soccer, when it comes to unequal pay. The organization announced this month it will double the women’s prize money from $30 million to $60 million for the 2023 tournament. But the prize pool was $400 million for the men last year in Russia and will be at $440 million for the men at the 2020 World Cup in Qatar.

So there is that crusade to be fought, and the up-front support by this team of gay rights. There are other issues that haven’t yet been broached by the players. Things aren’t perfect, even on this seemingly perfect team. Diversity on the roster remains a problem, because this is a country up to its neck in the pay-to-play rut. If you don’t have tens of thousands of dollars to send your kid to the very best development academies, she is unlikely to get very far in American soccer circles.

The USWNT celebrates with the FIFA Women's World Cup trophy.
The USWNT celebrates with the FIFA Women’s World Cup trophy.

In 2015, when the U.S. last won the World Cup, not a single woman of color took the field for the final against Japan. This time around, Crystal Dunn started and Christen Press came off the bench. That was what passed for diversity, but it will have to do for now. Hopefully, those numbers will continue to grow for 2019. Maybe Rapinoe, or another player, can embrace that cause, along with the many others.

Meanwhile, enjoy the parade, for the athletic feats or the politics. You know the American players will revel in the celebration, maybe sip some tea aboard a float or kick up another controversy. In New York, we can use these quadrennial, women’s soccer parades, because there hasn’t been a local champion worthy of such fanfare since the Giants in 2012.

These women are no longer mere flashing figures across our television screens, playing an ocean away. They are riding along Broadway, from the Battery to City Hall, beginning at 9:30 a.m.

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Because on the fields of France, they made America great again.