I haven’t been watching the Women’s World Cup matches in New Zealand, but I’ve been keeping up with the scores and the sports gossip, especially since the Anti-Woke Brigade seemed to be deliriously rooting against Team USA. The hatred for Megan Rapinoe is especially soul-crushing, and the MAGA crowd and MAGA-adjacent crowd have been screaming at and about the USWNT for days/weeks. Well, on Sunday, that crowd got what they wanted: Sweden beat the US in penalties in the Round of 16. Apparently, the USWNT was the better team up until the penalty kicks, that’s when everything fell apart.
I follow a lot of sports journalists on social media, and the consensus seems to be that the USWNT came into the World Cup kind of undercooked, aimless and without strong coaching leadership. Their coach, Vlatko Andonovski, is getting a lot of blame, and he’s probably getting fired after this performance.
This was also Megan Rapinoe’s swan song, her final World Cup, her final run on the USWNT. After the loss to Sweden, Dr. Jill Biden and others paid tribute to Rapinoe’s incredible career, the Olympic medals, two World Cup titles and the Ballon d’Or Féminin. And she led the charge for equal pay on the American national teams and they f–king got that. It was lovely to see how many big-name people were praising Rapinoe, even as Trump chimed in and spoke for the Anti-Woke Brigade.
.@USWNT, you made this sport matter.
Today, you inspired us with your grit and determination. We are proud of you. Always remember that you encourage women and girls everywhere to show up and fight for their dreams. 💕 https://t.co/1vIkTaZ45n
— Jill Biden (@FLOTUS) August 6, 2023
.@mPinoe, I love watching you play. As an athlete and an advocate for equal pay and equal rights – you made us pay attention and change.
We can't wait to see what you do next, Megan. https://t.co/03aua1g1Fp
— Jill Biden (@FLOTUS) August 6, 2023
lmao this is so deranged pic.twitter.com/Sg5BO8YTrL
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) August 6, 2023
Megan Rapinoe takes Trump ON 🔥🔥🔥 pic.twitter.com/GOauktrlHn
— PLZPLZ Follow – Faith Back Rub (@FaithRubPol) August 7, 2023
Photos courtesy of Cover Images, Avalon Red.
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- (190708) — LYON, July 8, 2019 () — Megan Rapinoe of the United States celebrates after the awarding ceremony of the 2019 FIFA Women’s World Cup at Stade de Lyon in Lyon, France, July 7, 2019. (/Xu Zijian),Image: 536594032, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: WORLD RIGHTS excluding China – Fee Payable Upon Reproduction – For queries contact Avalon.red – sales@avalon.red London: +44 (0) 20 7421 6000 Los Angeles: +1 (310) 822 0419 Berlin: +49 (0) 30 76 212 251, Model Release: no, Credit line: Xu Zijian / Avalon
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- Megan Rapinoe, of the U.S. Soccer Women’s National Team, delivers remarks during an event to mark Equal Pay Day in the State Dining Room of the White House in Washington, DC, USA, 24 March 2021. Equal Pay Day marks the extra time it takes an average woman in the United States to earn the same pay that their male counterparts made the previous calendar year.,Image: 600879134, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: usage worldwide, Model Release: no, Credit line: Shawn Thew – Pool via CNP / DPA Picture Alliance / Avalon
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- ECHAUFFEMENT – 15 Megan Rapinoe (usa),Image: 605317301, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: , Model Release: no, Credit line: Philippe LECOEUR / Panoramic / Avalon
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- ECHAUFFEMENT – 15 Megan Rapinoe (usa),Image: 605317319, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: , Model Release: no, Credit line: Philippe LECOEUR / Panoramic / Avalon
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- HOLLYWOOD, LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA, USA – JULY 20: American professional soccer player Megan Rapinoe arrives at the 2022 ESPY Awards held at the Dolby Theatre on July 20, 2022 in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, United States.,Image: 708815782, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: , Model Release: no, Pictured: Megan Rapinoe, Credit line: Xavier Collin / Image Press Agency / Avalon
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- United States President Joe Biden awards the Presidential Medal of Freedom to Megan Rapinoe, an Olympic gold medalist, two-time Women’s World Cup champion and advocate for gender pay equality, racial justice and LGBTQI+ rights, and sixteen other recipients in the East Room of the White House in Washington, DC Featuring: President Joe Biden, Megan Rapinoe Where: Washington, District of Columbia, United States When: 07 Jul 2022 Credit: Ken Cedeno/Pool/CNP/startrakspho/Cover Images
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- Joie Megan Rapinoe (USA) victorieuse pose avec ses trophees SOCCER : USA vs Netherland – Final Women s world cup – 07/07/201
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- (190629) — PARIS, June 29, 2019 () — Megan Rapinoe (R) of the United States celebrates scoring with teammates during the quarterfinal match between France and the United States at the 2019 FIFA Women’s World Cup at Parc des Princes in Paris, France, June 28, 2019. The United States won 2-1. (/Mao Siqian)
We did not play well in the group stage, that’s for sure. We did look a little….listless, I guess? I don’t know. But we played REALLY well in the game against Sweden, the Swedish keeper also had an amazing game. And we literally lost by inches, sigh. It was heartbreaking to watch.
Rapinoe was getting a lot of heat because she missed her PK and then was laughing – but I think its clear she was laughing in a kind of stunned disbelief, maybe in kind of a “if I don’t laugh i’ll cry” way. I admit I was shocked she missed that kick. But, that’s how it goes sometimes.
My son plays keeper and my nerves are stretched so thin in every game he plays……and he’s 8. I was so on edge for Alyssa Naeher yesterday. she also had a great game and again, inches.
Anyway, Rapinoe did a lot for women’s soccer and I’m a big fan. It’s a sad way to end a career but she had a great career.
Having watched the penalties I think what was jarring after the penalty miss is that Rapinoe was laughing, obviously in a disbelieving way.
Then as she walked towards her teammates she was still smiling and laughing and talking to them as if it wasn’t a big deal.
To be honest, in that moment, if I’d been one of her teammates I would have been furious.
Doesn’t take away from her monumental career but it’s a shame it ended that way.
I think she was smiling to her teammates because two still had kicks to go (or maybe just Smith at that point, and then O’Hara came on as #7? I cant remember the specific order now.) But I think if she had walked over to 22 year old Sophie Smith and been like “omg that was horrible I can’t believe I missed it i’m so angry” I think it would have gotten in Smith’s head. So I think she laughed in a disbelieving way but was also trying to keep up the spirits of the team. At that point the game wasn’t over yet. When the game was finally over Rapinoe looked devastated.
As it was Smith missed her PK as well, which was hard to watch for her.
Ugh, I am so, so sick of everyone picking apart a woman who missed a PK and pretending that they know anything about how she should have reacted or what was best for the team. ffs, she was likely trying to keep up the spirits of the team but I’m going to go ahead and trust that one of the best to every play on team USA took her job seriously and did her best for the team.
Megan Rapinoe is a giant in women’s soccer and will be remembered as such.
She said missing the penalty kick felt like a “cruel joke.” She laughed because she couldn’t believe it. It was such a crappy way to end a glorious career.
I will always be grateful to her for the joy she brought to me and my daughters … for her tenacious fight for equal pay … and for standing up with trans women. I hope she and Sue Bird continue to live a beautiful life together, and I hope we see more of Megan, whether as a soccer commentator or a voice for social justice — or both.
(And yes, as Becks1 said, the US dominated yesterday’s game. It was just a brutal ending.)
I can’t be the only one who gasped at her response to trump, right? Stone cold hero.
I think that response is from a parody acct.
MAGA losers rooting against fellow Americans is disgraceful. It proves that these simps will defend anything that hateful orange troll does and says. He hates Megan and so they do too. Trash-ass unamerican simps.
This 100%.
Also Megan Rapinoe is that WOMAN. She is true American hero. Periodt.
Their masculinity is so fragile, a strong woman terrifies them.
right on. and don’t forget that these are exactly the same people who are pretending to ‘protect” women’s sports from trans individuals. they have never and will never, ever care about women’s sports. they just want an excuse to continue to hate
YES! They never GAF about women and girls sport until they decided trans people were now their number one target.
Well, I won’t say I was rooting against the US, but I was rooting for other teams that showed more cohesion and commitment, like Japan. It’s too bad this is Megan Rapinoe’s last season, but she’ll always be a towering figure in the sport. I wish her all the best, and the best for the US team to get themselves back on track.
I havnt been able to stay up and watch the games. Trying to catch it the next day but sometimes I’ll see a headline beforehand😂. Excited for the rest of the games. Meghan Rapinoe is such an icon.
Awww, I was so sad to see them lose. Especially in such a heartbreaking way.
Their previous wins did such incredible things for women’s soccer (and women’s sports in general), and I know things continue to rise for future generations.
Why do we need to hear every word that awful man says? That gives him power.
I’ve been also noticing the past couple weeks these idiot MAGAs rooting against our US women team because they rather root for their savior’s word instead. They are a pretty disgusting cult 🤮. And I would tell myself, Trump would throw these idiots under the bus any day just to save himself. Just like he did Jan 6 2021.
I think in the end Megan Rapinoe and her teammates really progressed the sport here in the USA and around the world(years ago women’s soccer wasn’t nearly popular around the world as it is now) – made it even more popular where more teams around the world encouraged themselves to be more competitive like the US team, and will encourage more younger generation of girls to play.
And while the insecure MAGAs will eventually become aged and obsoleted.
I was at one of the pool games. Rapinoe didn’t play well at all. Pretty much every time she touched the ball she flubbed it. She’s been great in the past but unfortunately she wasn’t in form this time round.