American soccer star Megan Rapinoe will retire at the conclusion of the 2023 NWSL season, she announced on Saturday.
The Story: Rapinoe confirmed the news both on Twitter and at a news briefing, saying she felt “honored to be able to have represented this country and this federation for so many years.”
- “This is gonna be my last season, my last world cup and my last NWSL season,” she said. “Obviously there’ll be more to come further down, down the road after hopefully we get done what we want to get done, but I just want to say thank you to everybody, to you guys, to Vlatko, to U.S. soccer to, you know, literally everyone that I’ve played with, all of my coaches.”
Why it matters: Rapinoe has been a part of the U.S. Women’s National Team since 2006 and has two Olympic medals and two World Cup championships.
- Off the field, the 38-year-old has made a significant mark in the contribution to LGBTQ equality and equality in women’s sports.
- In 2016, she and other members of the U.S. Women’s National Team filed an Equal Employment Opportunity Commission complaint against the U.S. Soccer Federation, alleging gender discrimination.
- In 2022, Rapinoe was among 17 recipients to receive the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation’s highest civilian honor.
“I am humbled and truly honored to be chosen for this award by President Biden and feel as inspired and motivated as ever to continue this long history of fighting for the freedoms of all people,” Rapinoe said in a statement.
