The United States women’s national team were celebrated with a ticker-tape parade in New York City two days after winning their fourth World Cup as the squad’s campaign for pay equity continued to gain momentum.

Thousands of diehard fans clad in red, white and blue lined the stretch of Broadway known as the Canyon of Heroes as a caravan of floats carried the 23-member squad from the Battery to City Hall, where they received symbolic keys to the city from New York City’s mayor, Bill de Blasio.

The ceremony took place as the team’s push for pay equity with male players has reached a critical mass with chants of “U-S-A! Equal pay!” heard throughout the day, even led by De Blasio himself during the city hall ceremony where co-captains Carli Lloyd, Alex Morgan and Megan Rapinoe addressed the crowds.

“This group is so resilient, is so tough, has such a sense of humor, is just so badass,” said Rapinoe, who scored six goals and claimed the Golden Ball as the top player of this year’s tournament, and has been a vocal critic of Donald Trump and his administration.

Megan Rapinoe holds the Women’s World Cup trophy on the parade float. Photograph: Richard Drew/AP

“This is my charge to everyone: we have to be better. We have to love more. Hate less. We got to listen more and talk less … It’s our responsibility to make the world a better place.

“There is nothing that can faze this group. We’re chilling. We’ve got tea-sipping. We’ve got celebrations. We’ve got pink hair and purple hair. We’ve got tattoos and dreadlocks. We’ve got white girls and black girls and everything in between. Straight girls and gay girls.”

"It's my absolute honor to lead this team out on the field," Megan Rapinoe says. "There's no other place that I would rather be. Even in the presidential race. I'm busy, sorry." https://t.co/7LJHPDVRm9 pic.twitter.com/ADUGFuRluW — CBS News (@CBSNews) July 10, 2019

“I couldn’t be more proud to be a co-captain with Carli and Alex on this team. It’s my absolute honor to lead this team out on the field. There’s no place I’d rather be, even in the presidential race. I’m busy, I’m sorry.”

The squad’s 2-0 win over Netherlands in the final match on Sunday capped a World Cup campaign that attracted vast television audiences and unprecedented public interest.

Construction workers sounded air horns from buildings high above as thunderous chants of “U-S-A!” and “Equal pay!” rose when the caravan of floats moved past throngs of paradegoers, some of whom had lined up as early as 5am for prime viewing spots along the rails. Confetti rained down from the office buildings in New York’s Financial District along the famed parade route long reserved for world leaders, hometown sports stars and returning war veterans, astronauts and Olympians.

In March, all 28 players on the women’s team filed a gender discrimination lawsuit against the US Soccer Federation, demanding their compensation equal that of their male counterparts.

“The level of interest and excitement is much higher from four years ago,” said Jessica Lappin, president of the parade’s organizers, Alliance of Downtown New York, referring to the 2015 parade for the team after its last World Cup victory. “That’s partly because they’re women’s rights icons now.”

Jules Ridgeway, a 39-year-old attorney and self-described “super-fan of women’s sports” from the Hudson Valley town of Newburgh, watched the procession in lower Manhattan from the corner of Broadway and Fulton.

A supporter in New York waits for the parade to start. Photograph: Mike Segar/Reuters

“The level of excellence on the soccer field, year after year, they’re laying it down,” said Ridgeway, who was wearing a Seattle Storm jersey with the name of Sue Bird (who is Rapinoe’s partner). “They’re not getting what they deserve to get and we’ve got to show up in every way we can and this is one of them.”

She added: “It’s a moment right now that’s happening. The US women’s national team really represents the best of what’s possible when you’re talking about American patriotism. It’s inclusive, its celebratory, it’s joyous. It’s about bringing people in. And as far as queer representation goes, we couldn’t be prouder to be represented by Megan and by Ashlyn and all the folks on the team who are out.”

Barbara Lanciers, a 39-year-old foundation director, was even more pointed in her assessment: “This team is so talented, so excellent, so above and beyond, they should be paid what they’re worth. And they’re worth a lot – more than the men.”

Earlier Wednesday, the team joined New York’s governor, Andrew Cuomo, as he signed a law expanding gender pay equality in the state, eliminating a “loophole” that he said still allows discrimination in pay for the same jobs.

“It’s not just the right thing to do, it’s not just the moral thing to do, it is also the law in the state of New York,” Cuomo said.

#BREAKING: I just signed new pay equity legislation at the #USWNTParade.



The women's soccer team plays the same game that the men’s soccer players play — only better. If anything, the men should get paid less.



Thank you @USWNT for helping lead this movement for change! pic.twitter.com/qHy2aYs2Tl — Andrew Cuomo (@NYGovCuomo) July 10, 2019

The mayor announced the city would honor the team almost immediately after the United States’ win in Sunday’s final, where they became only the third team to successfully defend a World Cup since the second world war after the Brazil men (in 1962) and the Germany women (in 2007). Tickets for the ceremony at city hall following the parade were snatched up within seconds on Monday.

According to the mayor’s office, New York City has hosted 206 parades along the Canyon of Heroes since the first one, to celebrate the dedication of the Statue of Liberty in 1886. It was the first thrown by the city since the team won the World Cup in 2015, which attracted tens of thousands of paradegoers and cost the city an estimated $1.5m, with an additional $450,000 coming from private sponsors.

Reuters contributed to this report