Megan Rapinoe Says She's 'Been Thinking About' Retirement 'A Lot' After Olympic Disappointment
Left-wing U.S. women’s soccer star Megan Rapinoe says she has been putting a lot of thought into retirement following an embarrassing performance in the Tokyo Olympics.
After seemingly putting more effort into social activism than playing their sport, the U.S. women’s team took bronze in Tokyo.
Rapinoe, 36, seems to have her better playing days behind her, and she told ESPN that she’s thinking about hanging up the cleats.
She said “she doesn’t know what her playing future looks like and she will ‘need to take some time to think about it,’” the outlet reported Tuesday.
In response to the news that her 39-year-old USWNT teammate, Carli Lloyd, would retire, Rapinoe admitted that it was time for her to mull a similar decision.
“Just in terms of my whole career, I don’t really know yet. I need to take some time to think about it,” she said. “They always say, ‘You’ll know when you know,’ but it’s not really like that, because you could kind of keep going, and it’s like, ‘Aw yeah, you’ve accomplished so much, you’ll be fine stepping away.’
“But the conversation is always anguished in your mind. Or people just don’t think about it. I’ve been thinking about it a lot.”
Rapinoe did not expound on her thoughts on retirement or offer a timetable on when such a decision will be made.
At her age, however, it’s difficult to see her again representing the U.S. in the 2024 Olympics in Paris.
After the last several years of divisive activism, surely a lot of Americans would prefer that the leftist retire.
The U.S. lost in Japan to Sweden and Canada — two teams that should have been handled easily. But Rapinoe was focused on overt political displays and not soccer, apparently.
More than anything, she has become synonymous with disrespecting America in front of the world:
‘It was a little nod to Kaepernick’: Megan Rapinoe kneels for Star-Spangled Banner https://t.co/VclhwJGcgX
— The Guardian (@guardian) September 5, 2016
Megan Rapinoe kneels again — this time as a member of the USWNT https://t.co/VXA0uagFJ3 pic.twitter.com/uyauY4o5fC
— HuffPost BlackVoices (@blackvoices) September 16, 2016
Megan Rapinoe: ‘We’re everything Trump loves – except that we’re powerful women’ https://t.co/xgbv5eYCRc
— The Guardian (@guardian) August 17, 2019
Megan Rapinoe rips Trump: “I think we’re one step away from just saying a racial slur on national television” https://t.co/Dl7fmsfXR1 pic.twitter.com/QVf5qBNqIW
— The Hill (@thehill) July 21, 2019
It’s also important to remember how Rapinoe has negatively affected soccer:
U.S. Soccer will no longer require players stand for the national anthem, after the Board of Directors voted to repeal the policy. It was adopted in 2017 after Megan Rapinoe knelt in solidarity with Colin Kaepernick. #USMNT #USWNT #BlackLivesMatter pic.twitter.com/r4df29JUEZ
— Ian Cull (@NBCian) June 11, 2020
The USWNT knelt during the US national anthem before facing Holland today. https://t.co/Z5kXxMcIdi
— Nᴏʀᴍᴀɴ Sᴇᴀᴡʀɪɢʜᴛ III (@SeawrightSays) November 27, 2020
Rapinoe’s trademark kneeling during the national anthem has angered patriotic sports fans for years now.
That, coupled with her declining game, should mean the end of her long career representing the red, white and blue.
Perhaps at some point the women’s team will acquire a new face. Hopefully, that person will be one who embodies America’s principles and doesn’t openly show hostility toward the flag and country.
Rapinoe’s retirement would give the women’s team a chance to reboot and get back to winning big games — and also a shot at reconnecting with fans who have turned away from “woke” sports in droves.
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