WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:01.780 Welcome back to The Deep Dive. This is where 00:00:01.780 --> 00:00:03.899 we take those huge stacks of sources you send 00:00:03.899 --> 00:00:06.080 our way and we really, we just pull out the essential 00:00:06.080 --> 00:00:08.060 knowledge. We give you that shortcut to being 00:00:08.060 --> 00:00:10.759 well -informed. And today, we've got a really 00:00:10.759 --> 00:00:13.279 complex one. We do. Our mission today is a deep 00:00:13.279 --> 00:00:16.100 dive into, well, the dual legacy of a figure 00:00:16.100 --> 00:00:18.980 whose influence, you know, it stretches so far 00:00:18.980 --> 00:00:21.280 beyond the boundaries of the soccer pitch, Megan 00:00:21.280 --> 00:00:23.699 Rapinoe. Yeah, and this is a complicated exploration. 00:00:23.940 --> 00:00:25.879 We're not just looking at an elite athlete here. 00:00:26.519 --> 00:00:28.379 What we're really doing is charting the course 00:00:28.379 --> 00:00:31.969 of a true cultural icon. The sources we have 00:00:31.969 --> 00:00:34.710 are incredibly rich. They detail everything from 00:00:34.710 --> 00:00:36.810 her athletic journey, collegiate resilience, 00:00:37.189 --> 00:00:39.890 that spectacular World Cup glory, all the way 00:00:39.890 --> 00:00:43.829 to her unwavering and very high -profile role 00:00:43.829 --> 00:00:46.229 as an activist. Especially in those fights for 00:00:46.229 --> 00:00:50.149 equal pay and LGBTQIA plus rights. It's a huge 00:00:50.149 --> 00:00:52.109 part of her story. It is. I mean, we have material 00:00:52.109 --> 00:00:55.090 that covers her entire life and career. And the 00:00:55.090 --> 00:00:56.950 numbers alone, they tell a story. You're looking 00:00:56.950 --> 00:01:00.390 at 205 club appearances, 203 international... 00:01:01.409 --> 00:01:04.810 But then you see the other side of it, the honors, 00:01:05.010 --> 00:01:08.150 you know, the Ballon d 'Or, the best FIFA women's 00:01:08.150 --> 00:01:10.269 player, and then something like the Presidential 00:01:10.269 --> 00:01:12.930 Medal of Freedom. Exactly. And you realize the 00:01:12.930 --> 00:01:15.189 accolades are, I mean, they're almost perfectly 00:01:15.189 --> 00:01:17.709 divided between her athletic genius on one hand 00:01:17.709 --> 00:01:20.870 and her, well, her political courage on the other. 00:01:21.370 --> 00:01:24.209 So our goal here is to really weave those two 00:01:24.209 --> 00:01:26.810 narratives together seamlessly. We want to understand 00:01:26.810 --> 00:01:30.090 how the injuries she had early on actually shaped 00:01:30.090 --> 00:01:32.930 her mentality. Right. And how the economic instability 00:01:32.930 --> 00:01:36.609 she faced as a young pro maybe fueled her activism. 00:01:36.769 --> 00:01:39.430 And of course, how. Her success on the pitch 00:01:39.430 --> 00:01:42.590 gave her the power, the platform to have such 00:01:42.590 --> 00:01:45.129 a loud voice off of it. This isn't just a biography. 00:01:45.290 --> 00:01:47.629 It's really an exploration of how an athlete 00:01:47.629 --> 00:01:51.109 redefined what it means to be a champion in the 00:01:51.109 --> 00:01:53.290 modern era. Okay, let's unpack this. Let's start 00:01:53.290 --> 00:01:55.409 right at the foundation. Let's do it. So Rapinoe 00:01:55.409 --> 00:01:57.730 was born in Redding, California back in 1985. 00:01:58.469 --> 00:02:00.909 She has a fraternal twin, Rachel, and they both 00:02:00.909 --> 00:02:02.950 started playing soccer really, really early. 00:02:03.069 --> 00:02:05.430 Yeah, at age three. And a lot of that initial 00:02:05.430 --> 00:02:07.409 inspiration came from their older brother, Brian. 00:02:07.870 --> 00:02:10.750 And it's this relationship with Brian that our 00:02:10.750 --> 00:02:13.289 sources keep pointing to as, well, foundational. 00:02:13.610 --> 00:02:15.710 Foundational to her political consciousness that 00:02:15.710 --> 00:02:17.729 would come much later. Absolutely. The sources 00:02:17.729 --> 00:02:21.009 really highlight this duality. While Megan was 00:02:21.009 --> 00:02:23.530 on this path, you know, pursuing excellence in 00:02:23.530 --> 00:02:26.270 soccer. Her family life was grappling with these 00:02:26.270 --> 00:02:28.789 immense challenges all revolving around Brian. 00:02:28.930 --> 00:02:30.569 And what were those challenges specifically? 00:02:31.009 --> 00:02:33.569 He struggled profoundly with drug abuse. And 00:02:33.569 --> 00:02:37.789 that led to frequent and often very lengthy periods 00:02:37.789 --> 00:02:41.050 of incarceration in different prisons. Notably. 00:02:42.089 --> 00:02:44.310 Pelican Bay State Prison, which is a Supermax 00:02:44.310 --> 00:02:46.870 facility. So this is an abstract for her. She 00:02:46.870 --> 00:02:48.770 wasn't just reading about systemic issues in 00:02:48.770 --> 00:02:51.469 a book. She was living through the direct consequences 00:02:51.469 --> 00:02:54.509 of the carceral system, the addiction crisis, 00:02:54.629 --> 00:02:57.009 things that disproportionately affect marginalized 00:02:57.009 --> 00:02:59.870 communities. Precisely. That experience must 00:02:59.870 --> 00:03:01.969 have grounded her activism in a way that's totally 00:03:01.969 --> 00:03:04.969 different than, say, an athlete who just decides 00:03:04.969 --> 00:03:07.210 to sign on to a cause later in life. Right. It 00:03:07.210 --> 00:03:09.349 informs a deep empathy for sure, but it also 00:03:09.349 --> 00:03:11.610 sounds like it gave her a more... more sophisticated 00:03:11.610 --> 00:03:13.849 understanding of injustice from a very young 00:03:13.849 --> 00:03:17.710 age. It did. And it gets even more complex. The 00:03:17.710 --> 00:03:19.689 sources note that Brian's challenges weren't 00:03:19.689 --> 00:03:21.969 just with the cycle of incarceration. Inside 00:03:21.969 --> 00:03:24.930 the prison system, he also experienced and was 00:03:24.930 --> 00:03:27.689 for a time involved with elements of white supremacist 00:03:27.689 --> 00:03:30.889 groups. Wow. So as a young person, she's witnessing 00:03:30.889 --> 00:03:33.909 all these layered societal failures right in 00:03:33.909 --> 00:03:37.169 her own family. Addiction, incarceration, racial 00:03:37.169 --> 00:03:40.090 prejudice. It gave her this deeply personal mandate 00:03:40.090 --> 00:03:42.490 for criminal justice reform and for racial equity. 00:03:42.689 --> 00:03:44.729 It just adds a whole other layer of gravity to 00:03:44.729 --> 00:03:46.669 every political action she took later in her 00:03:46.669 --> 00:03:49.030 career. And what's so fascinating is this dynamic 00:03:49.030 --> 00:03:52.419 of these two parallel paths. Her brother is battling 00:03:52.419 --> 00:03:55.379 these immense internal and external demons while 00:03:55.379 --> 00:03:58.400 she is achieving this elite, world -class athletic 00:03:58.400 --> 00:04:01.340 success. The sources even suggest that her success, 00:04:01.520 --> 00:04:03.740 her visibility, eventually served as a source 00:04:03.740 --> 00:04:05.740 of motivation for him. It was something that 00:04:05.740 --> 00:04:07.860 drove him towards sobriety later in his life. 00:04:08.020 --> 00:04:10.180 That narrative right there, it presides a crucial 00:04:10.180 --> 00:04:12.659 insight into her character. You can see how she 00:04:12.659 --> 00:04:14.939 learned early on that life is messy. It's often 00:04:14.939 --> 00:04:18.199 contradictory. She learned resilience and she 00:04:18.199 --> 00:04:20.720 learned the importance of visibility. both for 00:04:20.720 --> 00:04:23.339 her own success and for advocating for people 00:04:23.339 --> 00:04:25.800 who are marginalized by the very systems that 00:04:25.800 --> 00:04:28.740 caught her brother. So from this really complicated 00:04:28.740 --> 00:04:30.639 family background, she moves on to the University 00:04:30.639 --> 00:04:32.980 of Portland. She gets a full scholarship. And 00:04:32.980 --> 00:04:35.339 her arrival there was immediately impactful. 00:04:35.639 --> 00:04:39.540 Oh, yeah. In 2005, as a freshman, she was a central 00:04:39.540 --> 00:04:42.339 force, maybe the central force, in leading the 00:04:42.339 --> 00:04:44.939 Portland Pilots to a completely undefeated season 00:04:44.939 --> 00:04:47.759 in the NCAA Division I Women's Soccer Championship. 00:04:48.360 --> 00:04:50.899 And her contribution that season was, I mean, 00:04:50.920 --> 00:04:53.300 just remarkable for a first -year player. 15 00:04:53.300 --> 00:04:55.600 goals and 13 assists. That's, you know, it showed 00:04:55.600 --> 00:04:58.240 she was already this mature playmaker. She was 00:04:58.240 --> 00:05:00.579 combining this high -level technical skill with 00:05:00.579 --> 00:05:03.240 just exceptional on -field vision. But just as 00:05:03.240 --> 00:05:06.360 her career is really taking off, fate intervenes, 00:05:06.360 --> 00:05:08.240 and it comes in the form of injury. And this 00:05:08.240 --> 00:05:10.439 is the injury narrative that is so central to 00:05:10.439 --> 00:05:12.899 her entire development. She suffered not just 00:05:12.899 --> 00:05:16.279 one, but two separate season -ending ACL injuries. 00:05:16.759 --> 00:05:18.860 The first was in 2006 and the second one came 00:05:18.860 --> 00:05:21.759 in 2007. So you're talking about missing two 00:05:21.759 --> 00:05:24.959 full seasons of soccer, including the 2007 World 00:05:24.959 --> 00:05:28.879 Cup and the 2008 Beijing Olympics. That must 00:05:28.879 --> 00:05:31.300 have felt like a absolutely crushing blow at 00:05:31.300 --> 00:05:33.759 the time. Devastating. I mean, not just physically, 00:05:33.819 --> 00:05:36.319 but psychologically. She's watching these prime 00:05:36.319 --> 00:05:38.779 international opportunities just pass her by 00:05:38.779 --> 00:05:41.399 from the sidelines. Yeah. But this is the moment. 00:05:41.439 --> 00:05:43.639 This is the period of genuine self -reflection 00:05:43.639 --> 00:05:46.680 that the sources really, really highlight. The 00:05:46.680 --> 00:05:49.709 injury became her crucible. She actually characterized 00:05:49.709 --> 00:05:51.610 this experience with a really powerful quote. 00:05:51.689 --> 00:05:54.250 She said, I know this sounds weird, but getting 00:05:54.250 --> 00:05:56.350 hurt was one of the best things that ever happened 00:05:56.350 --> 00:05:58.470 to me. It really gave me a different perspective. 00:05:58.730 --> 00:06:01.149 And she goes on, the rehab process makes you 00:06:01.149 --> 00:06:03.449 stronger on all fronts, mentally and physically. 00:06:03.649 --> 00:06:06.589 I feel stronger and a better person for it. I 00:06:06.589 --> 00:06:08.670 would never wish it on anyone, but I don't wish 00:06:08.670 --> 00:06:10.389 I could take it back. That is not your typical 00:06:10.389 --> 00:06:12.529 athlete boilerplate, you know, I'll come back 00:06:12.529 --> 00:06:15.769 stronger line. Not at all. That quote reveals 00:06:15.769 --> 00:06:19.089 a pivot. A pivot from being solely focused on 00:06:19.089 --> 00:06:22.370 performance to, well, gaining perspective. The 00:06:22.370 --> 00:06:25.250 forced downtime, it allowed her to engage with 00:06:25.250 --> 00:06:27.649 the world beyond the training pitch. Right. And 00:06:27.649 --> 00:06:29.569 the sources suggest that the discipline required 00:06:29.569 --> 00:06:32.990 for a dual ACL rehab, which is this intense, 00:06:33.129 --> 00:06:36.490 focused, often solitary work, that's what forged 00:06:36.490 --> 00:06:38.230 the mental toughness she would need to become 00:06:38.230 --> 00:06:40.670 this highly visible activist years and years 00:06:40.670 --> 00:06:42.850 later. It's basically the origin story of her 00:06:42.850 --> 00:06:45.660 perseverance. But if her college experience was 00:06:45.660 --> 00:06:48.579 defined by injury and recovery, her jump to the 00:06:48.579 --> 00:06:52.079 professional game was defined by... By economic 00:06:52.079 --> 00:06:54.040 instability, she gets drafted second overall 00:06:54.040 --> 00:06:57.040 in the 2009 WPS draft. By the Chicago Red Stars, 00:06:57.240 --> 00:06:59.939 yeah. And this period, the late 2000s, early 00:06:59.939 --> 00:07:02.279 2010s, it's so critical for understanding the 00:07:02.279 --> 00:07:05.160 landscape before the NWSL existed. Women's Professional 00:07:05.160 --> 00:07:07.939 Soccer League, the WPS, it was a league built 00:07:07.939 --> 00:07:09.800 on really shaky foundations. And we see that 00:07:09.800 --> 00:07:11.500 in her career paths. She's bouncing around so 00:07:11.500 --> 00:07:13.819 quickly. First the Chicago Red Stars, then the 00:07:13.819 --> 00:07:15.639 Philadelphia Independents, and then a team called 00:07:15.639 --> 00:07:18.660 Magic Jack. Three teams in three years. That 00:07:18.660 --> 00:07:20.779 rapid movement was just characteristic of the 00:07:20.779 --> 00:07:23.480 league's volatility. Nobody had any stability. 00:07:23.819 --> 00:07:26.019 And the economic details that are in the sources, 00:07:26.100 --> 00:07:29.540 they just perfectly illustrate the chaos. We 00:07:29.540 --> 00:07:32.180 know her transfer fee to Magic Jack was reportedly 00:07:32.180 --> 00:07:35.779 $100 ,000. Which on the surface sounds great. 00:07:36.199 --> 00:07:38.959 It suggests she was valued very highly as a commodity. 00:07:39.199 --> 00:07:41.540 But then you contrast that with the average female 00:07:41.540 --> 00:07:44.259 player salary at the time, which was, I mean, 00:07:44.279 --> 00:07:48.060 a paltry $25 ,000 a year. And you just see this 00:07:48.060 --> 00:07:50.519 massive, massive disparity. And that's the whole 00:07:50.519 --> 00:07:52.740 thesis of the future equal pay fight right there 00:07:52.740 --> 00:07:55.079 in those two numbers. The league recognized the 00:07:55.079 --> 00:07:57.500 player's market value. you know, evidenced by 00:07:57.500 --> 00:07:59.800 that six -figure transfer fee. Sure. But the 00:07:59.800 --> 00:08:02.240 institutional structures, it just refused to 00:08:02.240 --> 00:08:05.259 pay the players anything that approached a sustainable 00:08:05.259 --> 00:08:09.459 professional salary. $25 ,000 a year means most 00:08:09.459 --> 00:08:11.180 of these elite athletes are working second jobs 00:08:11.180 --> 00:08:13.420 or, you know, living below the poverty line. 00:08:13.660 --> 00:08:16.000 It created this system where their professional 00:08:16.000 --> 00:08:18.920 status was purely nominal. It was in name only. 00:08:18.980 --> 00:08:20.939 The league structure just couldn't support the 00:08:20.939 --> 00:08:23.759 talent it had. And so operations were suspended 00:08:23.759 --> 00:08:27.449 entirely in early 2012. The whole league just 00:08:27.449 --> 00:08:30.230 collapsed. So to stay sharp during this collapse, 00:08:30.370 --> 00:08:33.129 she has to take these brief kind of necessary 00:08:33.129 --> 00:08:35.629 detours. She does. She played a couple of games 00:08:35.629 --> 00:08:38.389 for Sydney FC in Australia, and then she joined 00:08:38.389 --> 00:08:40.970 the Seattle Sounders women in the USLW League 00:08:40.970 --> 00:08:43.929 in 2012. And that was alongside some other big 00:08:43.929 --> 00:08:46.509 national team stars like Hope Solo and Alex Morgan. 00:08:46.629 --> 00:08:49.889 And even those brief stints, they just underscore 00:08:49.889 --> 00:08:52.549 the hypocrisy of the whole system. That Seattle 00:08:52.549 --> 00:08:55.009 Sounders women team with those stars became an 00:08:55.009 --> 00:08:57.960 immediate. massive draw. The sources are pretty 00:08:57.960 --> 00:08:59.620 clear on this. Their average attendance that 00:08:59.620 --> 00:09:01.840 season was four times higher than the next closest 00:09:01.840 --> 00:09:04.360 team in the entire league. Four times. The fans 00:09:04.360 --> 00:09:06.620 were there. The talent was obviously world class. 00:09:06.919 --> 00:09:08.659 The financial structure was just fundamentally 00:09:08.659 --> 00:09:11.220 broken. It demonstrates that the players were 00:09:11.220 --> 00:09:13.879 box office. They could sell tickets even when 00:09:13.879 --> 00:09:15.620 the league structure wasn't ready to sustain 00:09:15.620 --> 00:09:18.730 them. And that massive gap between the proven 00:09:18.730 --> 00:09:21.070 value they brought in ticket sales and enthusiasm 00:09:21.070 --> 00:09:23.629 and the complete failure of the institution, 00:09:23.950 --> 00:09:27.389 that is the foundational economic injustice that 00:09:27.389 --> 00:09:30.070 Rapinoe would spend the rest of her career trying 00:09:30.070 --> 00:09:33.110 to correct. It gives so much context to her later 00:09:33.110 --> 00:09:35.669 actions. OK, so given all that instability in 00:09:35.669 --> 00:09:37.470 the U .S., it's completely understandable that 00:09:37.470 --> 00:09:40.289 she looked abroad. In early 2013, she signs a 00:09:40.289 --> 00:09:43.610 six -month contract with Olympique Lyonnais. 00:09:43.730 --> 00:09:46.840 Lyon in France. Yeah. And this was a move from, 00:09:46.960 --> 00:09:48.820 I mean, let's be honest, amateur level structural 00:09:48.820 --> 00:09:52.200 chaos to the absolute pinnacle of established 00:09:52.200 --> 00:09:54.519 European club football. Lyon was the ultimate 00:09:54.519 --> 00:09:56.480 standard at that time. The ultimate. They had 00:09:56.480 --> 00:09:59.200 won six consecutive French League titles and 00:09:59.200 --> 00:10:01.659 two straight UEFA Women's Champions League titles. 00:10:01.820 --> 00:10:04.600 For Rapinoe, this wasn't just about a paycheck. 00:10:04.919 --> 00:10:06.879 Although the paycheck was better. Much better. 00:10:07.340 --> 00:10:10.720 It was reported at around 11 ,000 euros per month, 00:10:10.899 --> 00:10:13.500 which is significantly more stable and lucrative 00:10:13.500 --> 00:10:16.360 than anything that WPS could offer. But it was 00:10:16.360 --> 00:10:18.120 also a chance for her to compete consistently 00:10:18.120 --> 00:10:20.419 at a level that actually matched her international 00:10:20.419 --> 00:10:23.350 profile. And she got that crucial European experience 00:10:23.350 --> 00:10:25.830 immediately. She played in the UEFA Women's Champions 00:10:25.830 --> 00:10:29.809 League, debuting in the 2012 -13 quarterfinal. 00:10:29.970 --> 00:10:32.789 She even scored in the semifinal, helping Lyon 00:10:32.789 --> 00:10:35.490 reach the final, where they did ultimately lose 00:10:35.490 --> 00:10:38.309 1 -0 to VFL Wolfsburg. But just by playing in 00:10:38.309 --> 00:10:40.509 that final, she became only the fifth American 00:10:40.509 --> 00:10:43.190 woman ever to achieve that distinction. It really 00:10:43.190 --> 00:10:48.320 solidified her status as a global player. But 00:10:48.320 --> 00:10:50.419 while this is happening, back in the U .S., a 00:10:50.419 --> 00:10:52.980 new opportunity was brewing. The National Women's 00:10:52.980 --> 00:10:55.679 Soccer League, the NWSL, was launching in 2013. 00:10:55.940 --> 00:10:58.419 And this league was structured specifically to 00:10:58.419 --> 00:11:01.120 avoid the pitfalls of the WPS. And she comes 00:11:01.120 --> 00:11:03.580 back home. She becomes an allocated player for 00:11:03.580 --> 00:11:05.820 the Seattle Reign FC, the team that would eventually 00:11:05.820 --> 00:11:08.779 become OL Reign. And this concept of an allocated 00:11:08.779 --> 00:11:10.840 player, that's really key to understanding the 00:11:10.840 --> 00:11:13.620 NWSL's initial stability, isn't it? Absolutely. 00:11:13.720 --> 00:11:17.340 It's the whole ballgame. The NWSL basically solved 00:11:17.340 --> 00:11:21.159 the salary problem that crippled the WPS by having 00:11:21.159 --> 00:11:24.059 the U .S. Soccer Federation, along with the Canadian 00:11:24.059 --> 00:11:27.059 and Mexican federations, subsidize the salaries 00:11:27.059 --> 00:11:29.360 of their own national team players. So players 00:11:29.360 --> 00:11:32.139 like Rapinoe had their salaries covered by the 00:11:32.139 --> 00:11:34.799 federation. Exactly. It ensured they were paid 00:11:34.799 --> 00:11:37.059 closer to their market value, and it relieved 00:11:37.059 --> 00:11:39.600 the immense financial pressure on these fledgling 00:11:39.600 --> 00:11:42.750 club teams. And that crucial stability. where 00:11:42.750 --> 00:11:45.909 she was guaranteed a high reliable salary. That's 00:11:45.909 --> 00:11:47.889 what allowed her to commit long term to a single 00:11:47.889 --> 00:11:50.889 club. And her arrival in Seattle was, I mean, 00:11:50.909 --> 00:11:53.250 nothing short of transformative for that franchise. 00:11:53.450 --> 00:11:55.889 The Reign were having a terrible inaugural season. 00:11:56.009 --> 00:11:58.269 They were sitting at a dreadful 0 -9 -1 record 00:11:58.269 --> 00:12:00.789 when she joined midseason. And the change was 00:12:00.789 --> 00:12:02.559 immediate. She didn't just add her technical 00:12:02.559 --> 00:12:05.100 skill. She brought star power, she brought media 00:12:05.100 --> 00:12:07.519 attention, and she brought a massive morale boost. 00:12:07.860 --> 00:12:10.820 She became the team's leading scorer despite 00:12:10.820 --> 00:12:13.659 playing in only 12 of the 22 regular season games. 00:12:13.779 --> 00:12:15.700 I remember one of her early games was against 00:12:15.700 --> 00:12:18.700 her old club, the Chicago Red Stars. Yeah, and 00:12:18.700 --> 00:12:20.960 she scored twice and assisted once in that game. 00:12:21.200 --> 00:12:23.919 She was named NWSL Player of the Week almost 00:12:23.919 --> 00:12:26.899 instantly. She was the catalyst, the single person 00:12:26.899 --> 00:12:29.519 who pulled that team out of the cellar. And that 00:12:29.519 --> 00:12:31.980 commitment to the Seattle franchise, it defined 00:12:31.980 --> 00:12:35.500 the next decade of her club career. She was instrumental 00:12:35.500 --> 00:12:39.120 in the team winning the NWSL Shield, that's the 00:12:39.120 --> 00:12:41.779 regular season title three, separate times. First 00:12:41.779 --> 00:12:45.000 back -to -back in 2014 and 2015, and then again 00:12:45.000 --> 00:12:47.919 much later in her career in 2022. She was such 00:12:47.919 --> 00:12:50.679 a consistent presence and a leader there. Even 00:12:50.679 --> 00:12:53.659 in 2021, you know, late in her career, she was 00:12:53.659 --> 00:12:55.899 serving as co -captain alongside Lauren Barnes. 00:12:56.139 --> 00:12:58.279 Still performing at a high level. She scored 00:12:58.279 --> 00:13:00.820 six goals in 12 appearances that year, was named 00:13:00.820 --> 00:13:03.919 NWSL Player of the Month in August. She sustained 00:13:03.919 --> 00:13:06.720 elite performance for a full 10 years within 00:13:06.720 --> 00:13:09.399 one system. That level of stability was just 00:13:09.399 --> 00:13:11.879 completely unheard of in American women's professional 00:13:11.879 --> 00:13:15.330 soccer before her. Which brings us to 2023. She 00:13:15.330 --> 00:13:17.330 announced her retirement would follow the NWSL 00:13:17.330 --> 00:13:20.070 season and the World Cup, marking the final chapter 00:13:20.070 --> 00:13:22.929 of her storied club career. And the love that 00:13:22.929 --> 00:13:25.330 City had for her was just so evident in her send 00:13:25.330 --> 00:13:27.970 -off. Her final regular season home match in 00:13:27.970 --> 00:13:31.490 October 2023. It was a landmark moment. It really 00:13:31.490 --> 00:13:34.009 was. It set a new NWSL record for attendance. 00:13:34.450 --> 00:13:38.389 34 ,130 fans at Lumen Field. It was this massive 00:13:38.389 --> 00:13:40.750 emotional celebration of her impact on the league, 00:13:40.909 --> 00:13:43.230 on the sport, and on the community that she helped 00:13:43.230 --> 00:13:45.840 build for a decade. But the narrative twist that 00:13:45.840 --> 00:13:48.320 followed was just brutal. It was almost cinematic 00:13:48.320 --> 00:13:51.039 in its cruelty. The Reign make it all the way 00:13:51.039 --> 00:13:54.519 to the NWSL championship final against NJNY Gotham. 00:13:54.600 --> 00:13:57.480 Her final match. Her final match. And just three 00:13:57.480 --> 00:13:59.519 minutes into the final match of her entire club 00:13:59.519 --> 00:14:02.200 career, she goes down. She suffers a torn Achilles 00:14:02.200 --> 00:14:04.960 tendon. It was an immediate catastrophic injury. 00:14:05.100 --> 00:14:07.120 A non -contact play. You could just feel the 00:14:07.120 --> 00:14:09.580 air go out of the stadium. And this sudden realization 00:14:09.580 --> 00:14:11.740 that her final professional moment on a field 00:14:11.740 --> 00:14:14.139 would be defined by agony and a... premature 00:14:14.139 --> 00:14:16.700 exit. Such a poignant irony for an athlete who 00:14:16.700 --> 00:14:18.639 is all about the spectacle, the grand gesture, 00:14:18.759 --> 00:14:20.980 the defiant presence. Yeah. For her final moment 00:14:20.980 --> 00:14:23.120 of play to be defined by silence and fragility. 00:14:23.299 --> 00:14:26.279 The sources noted the immediate emotional toll 00:14:26.279 --> 00:14:28.779 it took on her, on her teammates and on the whole 00:14:28.779 --> 00:14:32.220 stadium. Just a gut punch. And given that she 00:14:32.220 --> 00:14:34.460 defined her entire career by demanding better 00:14:34.460 --> 00:14:37.019 and refusing to quit, was there any reflection 00:14:37.019 --> 00:14:38.919 in the source material about that cool twist? 00:14:39.220 --> 00:14:41.480 Or did the focus just immediately shift to her 00:14:41.480 --> 00:14:44.450 non -athletic legacy? Well, the discussion immediately 00:14:44.450 --> 00:14:46.889 acknowledged the brutal reality of it, you know, 00:14:46.909 --> 00:14:49.389 that the fairy tale ending was denied. But her 00:14:49.389 --> 00:14:51.990 own reaction, as noted in the interviews that 00:14:51.990 --> 00:14:54.269 followed, it was really characteristic of her. 00:14:54.490 --> 00:14:57.690 So she focused on the moment of shared pain with 00:14:57.690 --> 00:15:00.730 her teammates. She expressed gratitude for the 00:15:00.730 --> 00:15:03.330 opportunity to even be there rather than dwelling 00:15:03.330 --> 00:15:06.190 on the injustice of the injury itself. It really 00:15:06.190 --> 00:15:08.409 highlights that for her, the focus was always 00:15:08.409 --> 00:15:11.029 on the collective effort, even when her own individual 00:15:11.029 --> 00:15:13.590 career ended with this sudden devastating personal 00:15:13.590 --> 00:15:16.309 loss. So for club career was a story of building 00:15:16.309 --> 00:15:18.389 stability. Her international career with the 00:15:18.389 --> 00:15:20.509 U .S. Women's National Team was just a collection 00:15:20.509 --> 00:15:23.450 of singular high stakes moments that are now. 00:15:23.789 --> 00:15:26.110 permanently etched in soccer lore. And that journey 00:15:26.110 --> 00:15:27.970 wasn't without its challenges either, even on 00:15:27.970 --> 00:15:30.590 the international stage. Her senior team debut 00:15:30.590 --> 00:15:33.789 was way back in 2006. Right before the injuries. 00:15:34.009 --> 00:15:36.789 Exactly. But because of those two ACL injuries, 00:15:37.049 --> 00:15:40.210 she was sidelined for two massive events, the 00:15:40.210 --> 00:15:44.500 2007 World Cup and the 2008 Olympics. So when 00:15:44.500 --> 00:15:46.440 she finally returned to the national team rotation 00:15:46.440 --> 00:15:50.220 in 2009, she immediately led the team in points. 00:15:50.440 --> 00:15:52.740 It was like she was making a statement. A statement 00:15:52.740 --> 00:15:54.840 that the physical recovery was complete and that 00:15:54.840 --> 00:15:58.080 her mental resolve was, if anything, even harder. 00:15:58.990 --> 00:16:02.049 And her first major challenge came in 2010 during 00:16:02.049 --> 00:16:05.250 this really crucial UEFA CONCACAF playoff against 00:16:05.250 --> 00:16:07.710 Italy. The U .S. team was basically fighting 00:16:07.710 --> 00:16:10.490 for its life just to qualify for the 2011 World 00:16:10.490 --> 00:16:13.210 Cup. And she provides the decisive moment. She 00:16:13.210 --> 00:16:14.990 assists the game -winning goal that secures the 00:16:14.990 --> 00:16:17.169 U .S. team's place in Germany. And that really 00:16:17.169 --> 00:16:19.730 sets the stage for her true international breakout 00:16:19.730 --> 00:16:22.450 in that 2011 World Cup. That tournament saw her 00:16:22.450 --> 00:16:24.450 score her first big goal on the international 00:16:24.450 --> 00:16:26.529 stage. It was during the group match against 00:16:26.529 --> 00:16:28.899 Colombia. But the goal itself is actually less 00:16:28.899 --> 00:16:30.700 memorable than the celebration that followed 00:16:30.700 --> 00:16:33.460 it. Oh, yeah. The microphone. Exactly. She scores. 00:16:33.539 --> 00:16:35.740 She runs over to an on -field microphone that 00:16:35.740 --> 00:16:37.259 was being used for the broadcast commentary. 00:16:37.679 --> 00:16:40.559 She taps it. And she sings a little snippet of 00:16:40.559 --> 00:16:43.379 Bruce Springsteen's Born in the USA. It was this 00:16:43.379 --> 00:16:46.600 completely impromptu, playful moment that just 00:16:46.600 --> 00:16:49.419 captured her personality perfectly. It went viral 00:16:49.419 --> 00:16:52.240 instantly. And it really marked her emergence 00:16:52.240 --> 00:16:55.399 as this figure with undeniable cultural charisma. 00:16:55.779 --> 00:16:57.980 That was the appetizer. The main course came 00:16:57.980 --> 00:17:00.440 in the quarterfinal against Brazil, a match that 00:17:00.440 --> 00:17:02.899 is still legendary in women's soccer. Okay, set 00:17:02.899 --> 00:17:05.500 the scene for us. The U .S. is down 2 -1 in overtime. 00:17:05.940 --> 00:17:08.559 They're playing a player down, so they're shorthanded, 00:17:08.559 --> 00:17:11.259 and they are facing elimination. Rapinoe comes 00:17:11.259 --> 00:17:13.519 on as a substitute. And this is where her technical 00:17:13.519 --> 00:17:16.140 mastery just shines under the most immense pressure 00:17:16.140 --> 00:17:19.019 imaginable. It's the 122nd minute of the game. 00:17:19.039 --> 00:17:21.160 We're talking literally seconds from defeat. 00:17:21.380 --> 00:17:24.119 She gathers the ball on the left flank. And from 00:17:24.119 --> 00:17:27.880 way out, she delivers this precise, driven, 40 00:17:27.880 --> 00:17:30.940 -yard cross that somehow, almost impossibly, 00:17:30.980 --> 00:17:33.519 drops perfectly onto Abby Wambach's head for 00:17:33.519 --> 00:17:36.559 the equalizer. That goal still holds the record 00:17:36.559 --> 00:17:39.099 for the latest ever scored in a World Cup match. 00:17:39.319 --> 00:17:41.819 And the cross itself was just a moment of technical 00:17:41.819 --> 00:17:45.049 brilliance driven by pure instinct. The quote 00:17:45.049 --> 00:17:47.170 we have from her describing it is just wonderful. 00:17:47.289 --> 00:17:50.309 It captures that raw, unplanned nature of genius. 00:17:50.690 --> 00:17:53.430 She just said, I just took a touch and frigging 00:17:53.430 --> 00:17:55.849 smacked it with my left foot. I don't think I've 00:17:55.849 --> 00:17:58.230 hit a ball like that with my left foot. I got 00:17:58.230 --> 00:18:00.170 it to the back post and that beast in the air 00:18:00.170 --> 00:18:02.190 just got a hold of it. That beast in the air 00:18:02.190 --> 00:18:04.369 being Abby Wambach, of course. Of course. It 00:18:04.369 --> 00:18:06.809 just shows it wasn't some rehearsed play. It 00:18:06.809 --> 00:18:09.589 was an impulsive, perfect execution born out 00:18:09.589 --> 00:18:12.630 of desperation and immense talent. And that moment, 00:18:12.670 --> 00:18:16.490 which earned ESPN's 2011 ESPY Award for Best 00:18:16.490 --> 00:18:18.630 Play of the Year, that's what established her 00:18:18.630 --> 00:18:20.869 reputation as the one you turn to in those high 00:18:20.869 --> 00:18:23.710 -pressure, late -game situations. And that reputation 00:18:23.710 --> 00:18:26.910 was absolutely cemented in the 2012 London Olympics. 00:18:27.309 --> 00:18:29.670 She was central to the U .S., winning the gold 00:18:29.670 --> 00:18:32.099 medal. the team with four assists and scoring 00:18:32.099 --> 00:18:34.359 three goals herself but there's one technical 00:18:34.359 --> 00:18:35.940 achievement from that tournament that stands 00:18:35.940 --> 00:18:38.079 out above all the others we have to talk about 00:18:38.079 --> 00:18:41.140 the olympico we do she scored a goal directly 00:18:41.140 --> 00:18:44.400 from a corner kick not once but twice during 00:18:44.400 --> 00:18:47.299 that single tournament this is a feat of technical 00:18:47.299 --> 00:18:50.420 brilliance that really needs a deeper explanation 00:18:51.000 --> 00:18:54.240 In Olympico, it requires incredible power, an 00:18:54.240 --> 00:18:56.779 insane amount of curve, and you have to read 00:18:56.779 --> 00:18:59.299 the wind conditions perfectly. You have to strike 00:18:59.299 --> 00:19:00.940 the ball just right. You're trying to impart 00:19:00.940 --> 00:19:03.960 this massive amount of topspin and sidespin, 00:19:04.019 --> 00:19:06.920 this bend that starts the ball moving away from 00:19:06.920 --> 00:19:08.900 the goal and then makes it curve back sharply 00:19:08.900 --> 00:19:11.839 into the net. It is exceedingly rare at the professional 00:19:11.839 --> 00:19:14.599 level. I mean, for any player. For her to score 00:19:14.599 --> 00:19:16.619 two in a single Olympic tournament, it means 00:19:16.619 --> 00:19:19.460 she mastered this specific set piece like few 00:19:19.460 --> 00:19:21.720 players in history ever have. And she is still 00:19:21.720 --> 00:19:24.220 the first and only player, male or female, to 00:19:24.220 --> 00:19:26.420 score an Olimpico at the Olympic Games. Just 00:19:26.420 --> 00:19:29.220 showcases her unparalleled set piece mastery 00:19:29.220 --> 00:19:31.799 and vision. And that tournament also featured 00:19:31.799 --> 00:19:34.039 her critical role in the semifinal win against 00:19:34.039 --> 00:19:36.640 Canada, which was an all -time classic match. 00:19:36.839 --> 00:19:40.220 A dramatic back -and -forth battle. It was. And 00:19:40.220 --> 00:19:43.099 Rapinoe scored two separate game equalizing goals 00:19:43.099 --> 00:19:46.440 in that match, just showing her capacity to constantly 00:19:46.440 --> 00:19:49.480 drag the team back into contention. She set the 00:19:49.480 --> 00:19:53.220 stage for Alex Morgan's winner in the 123rd minute. 00:19:53.339 --> 00:19:56.980 She was just the definition of relentless. Now, 00:19:57.000 --> 00:19:59.440 she was sidelined for much of the 2015 World 00:19:59.440 --> 00:20:02.299 Cup because of another ACL tear, which she sustained 00:20:02.299 --> 00:20:04.740 during the victory tour training later that year. 00:20:04.900 --> 00:20:08.140 But her final athletic peak came in the 2019. 00:20:08.460 --> 00:20:11.500 World Cup in France. And this tournament was 00:20:11.500 --> 00:20:14.519 her moment of singular global dominance. It truly 00:20:14.519 --> 00:20:16.660 was the culmination of her entire playing career. 00:20:16.859 --> 00:20:19.220 She was the driving force behind the U .S. winning 00:20:19.220 --> 00:20:21.740 its second consecutive title. Her performance 00:20:21.740 --> 00:20:24.160 was so commanding that she swept all the major 00:20:24.160 --> 00:20:26.740 individual honors. She won the Golden Boot as 00:20:26.740 --> 00:20:29.079 the top scorer with six goals. Went in the tiebreaker 00:20:29.079 --> 00:20:31.160 by playing the fewest minutes. And she also won 00:20:31.160 --> 00:20:33.259 the Golden Ball as the best player of the entire 00:20:33.259 --> 00:20:35.829 tournament. The sources really emphasized that 00:20:35.829 --> 00:20:38.150 her presence transcended the tournament itself. 00:20:38.509 --> 00:20:41.089 She wasn't just scoring goals, she was leading 00:20:41.089 --> 00:20:44.190 a movement on and off the field. In the final 00:20:44.190 --> 00:20:46.990 against the Netherlands, she scored her 50th 00:20:46.990 --> 00:20:49.630 international goal on a penalty kick, which secured 00:20:49.630 --> 00:20:52.980 the 2 -0 win. And notably, at age 34, she became 00:20:52.980 --> 00:20:55.559 the oldest woman ever to score in a World Cup 00:20:55.559 --> 00:20:58.559 final. The 2019 tournament just provided the 00:20:58.559 --> 00:21:02.299 perfect high watermark for her. It was this unquestioned 00:21:02.299 --> 00:21:04.799 athletic excellence combined with her unapologetic 00:21:04.799 --> 00:21:07.019 activism. Which we'll get into next, yeah. Her 00:21:07.019 --> 00:21:09.240 international career then wrapped up with a bronze 00:21:09.240 --> 00:21:12.460 medal at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, where, just 00:21:12.460 --> 00:21:14.799 for good measure, she scored another Olympico 00:21:14.799 --> 00:21:17.200 in the bronze medal match victory against Australia. 00:21:17.559 --> 00:21:20.079 Of course she did. However, her final World... 00:21:20.109 --> 00:21:23.369 Cup appearance in 2023, it ended with that painful, 00:21:23.470 --> 00:21:26.230 abrupt narrative shift we noted earlier. The 00:21:26.230 --> 00:21:29.589 USWNT was knocked out unexpectedly early in the 00:21:29.589 --> 00:21:31.890 round of 16 against Sweden. And in the dramatic 00:21:31.890 --> 00:21:34.789 penalty shootout that decided the match, Rapinoe, 00:21:34.789 --> 00:21:36.849 of all people, missed her shot. That was her 00:21:36.849 --> 00:21:39.390 final competitive touch in a World Cup. It's 00:21:39.390 --> 00:21:42.230 just such a powerful illustration that brilliance 00:21:42.230 --> 00:21:45.359 doesn't guarantee a clean ending. Even a career 00:21:45.359 --> 00:21:48.559 defined by game -winning clutch moments can end 00:21:48.559 --> 00:21:51.079 on a heartbreaking miss. OK, so her athletic 00:21:51.079 --> 00:21:53.059 achievements are monumental. We've established 00:21:53.059 --> 00:21:55.359 that. But many people would argue her greatest 00:21:55.359 --> 00:21:58.759 legacy is entirely off the field, that her activism 00:21:58.759 --> 00:22:01.519 fundamentally changed the political role of the 00:22:01.519 --> 00:22:03.660 American athlete. Yeah, I think you can trace 00:22:03.660 --> 00:22:05.960 the flashpoint of her visible political career 00:22:05.960 --> 00:22:09.039 back to the September 2016. At an international 00:22:09.039 --> 00:22:11.539 match, she knelt during the national anthem. 00:22:12.009 --> 00:22:13.970 And this was in solidarity with the NFL player 00:22:13.970 --> 00:22:16.869 Colin Kaepernick, who was protesting police brutality 00:22:16.869 --> 00:22:19.970 and systemic racism. Right. And that single action 00:22:19.970 --> 00:22:22.130 immediately put her right in the center of a 00:22:22.130 --> 00:22:24.450 national controversy. It distinguished her as 00:22:24.450 --> 00:22:26.750 one of the very few white athletes and certainly 00:22:26.750 --> 00:22:30.029 the most visible female athlete to join Kaepernick's 00:22:30.029 --> 00:22:31.990 protests at that time. And her rationale was, 00:22:32.089 --> 00:22:34.109 I mean, it was clear, it was direct, and it was 00:22:34.109 --> 00:22:36.950 specifically tied to her own identity. She stated, 00:22:37.559 --> 00:22:39.619 Being a gay American, I know what it means to 00:22:39.619 --> 00:22:41.660 look at the flag and not have it protect all 00:22:41.660 --> 00:22:44.440 of your liberties. So she framed it not as disrespect 00:22:44.440 --> 00:22:47.319 for the military or for the nation, but as a 00:22:47.319 --> 00:22:50.380 small necessary act to spark a dialogue about 00:22:50.380 --> 00:22:52.980 issues that affect racial minorities and the 00:22:52.980 --> 00:22:55.099 queer community. The backlash from the establishment, 00:22:55.200 --> 00:22:58.079 though, was immediate and it was heavy. We saw 00:22:58.079 --> 00:23:00.500 this unprecedented institutional maneuvering, 00:23:00.500 --> 00:23:03.059 like the Washington Spirit, her club team's opponent, 00:23:03.299 --> 00:23:06.000 playing the anthem uncharacteristically early, 00:23:06.200 --> 00:23:09.359 specifically to deny her the platform to protest. 00:23:09.700 --> 00:23:12.619 And U .S. Soccer, her employer, reacted by issuing 00:23:12.619 --> 00:23:15.180 a statement that mandated that players were expected 00:23:15.180 --> 00:23:18.940 to stand and honor our flag, which effectively 00:23:18.940 --> 00:23:20.920 was an attempt to silence her. And how did she 00:23:20.920 --> 00:23:23.140 react to that? She characterized that response 00:23:23.140 --> 00:23:26.579 as pretty cowardly, and she doubled down. She 00:23:26.579 --> 00:23:28.119 stated that she would probably never sing the 00:23:28.119 --> 00:23:30.460 anthem again. And that level of defiant commitment 00:23:30.460 --> 00:23:32.839 right in the face of direct institutional pressure, 00:23:32.920 --> 00:23:34.720 it just showed that her priorities were rooted 00:23:34.720 --> 00:23:38.220 in social justice first. That courage then transferred 00:23:38.220 --> 00:23:40.680 directly to the fight for equal pay, where she 00:23:40.680 --> 00:23:43.680 was a leading figure since at least 2016. She 00:23:43.680 --> 00:23:46.000 wasn't just a figurehead in this. She was actively 00:23:46.000 --> 00:23:48.319 involved in pushing the legal and public pressure 00:23:48.319 --> 00:23:50.740 campaigns. The most significant action was the 00:23:50.740 --> 00:23:55.029 March 2019 lawsuit. She and 27 of her teammates 00:23:55.029 --> 00:23:57.309 filed it against the U .S. Soccer Federation 00:23:57.309 --> 00:23:59.750 for gender discrimination. And they were aiming 00:23:59.750 --> 00:24:01.490 to achieve pay equity with the men's national 00:24:01.490 --> 00:24:04.690 team. The lawsuit highlighted all these disparities 00:24:04.690 --> 00:24:07.369 in pay, playing conditions, travel arrangements, 00:24:07.789 --> 00:24:10.369 medical treatment, everything. Now, this is where 00:24:10.369 --> 00:24:12.210 the legal complexity comes in, and we should 00:24:12.210 --> 00:24:13.970 be really clear about what the sources report 00:24:13.970 --> 00:24:17.450 here impartially. A judge dismissed key parts 00:24:17.450 --> 00:24:20.569 of that lawsuit in May of 2020. Right. So why 00:24:20.569 --> 00:24:22.589 was it dismissed? Well, the sources show the 00:24:22.589 --> 00:24:25.809 dismissal was legally complex. Crucially, the 00:24:25.809 --> 00:24:28.589 USWNT had in the past negotiated a collective 00:24:28.589 --> 00:24:31.740 bargaining agreement, a CBA. that prioritized 00:24:31.740 --> 00:24:34.359 higher fixed salaries and greater security. So 00:24:34.359 --> 00:24:37.420 guaranteed pay regardless of performance. And 00:24:37.420 --> 00:24:39.220 that was different from the high performance 00:24:39.220 --> 00:24:41.140 based bonus structure that the men's team had 00:24:41.140 --> 00:24:43.480 accepted. So the judge argued that because the 00:24:43.480 --> 00:24:45.259 players had accepted this different contract 00:24:45.259 --> 00:24:47.920 structure, they couldn't fully prove discrimination 00:24:47.920 --> 00:24:50.599 on the basis of gender when their overall compensation 00:24:50.599 --> 00:24:53.460 might. in some years, actually be comparable 00:24:53.460 --> 00:24:56.180 or even higher, especially in years where the 00:24:56.180 --> 00:24:58.640 men's team failed to qualify for major tournaments. 00:24:58.920 --> 00:25:01.720 So the legal system, at least initially, it failed 00:25:01.720 --> 00:25:04.599 to deliver the outcome they wanted. But the public 00:25:04.599 --> 00:25:07.180 pressure and the political optics of the situation, 00:25:07.460 --> 00:25:10.259 which Rapinoe amplified significantly through 00:25:10.259 --> 00:25:12.960 her media appearances, that really forced the 00:25:12.960 --> 00:25:15.700 issue. Exactly. The lawsuit, even though it was 00:25:15.700 --> 00:25:18.059 partially dismissed, it acted as this massive 00:25:18.059 --> 00:25:21.069 catalyst. The public support. Driven largely 00:25:21.069 --> 00:25:23.670 by Rapinoe's huge, visible platform in the lead 00:25:23.670 --> 00:25:27.049 -up to the 2019 World Cup, it forced the USSF 00:25:27.049 --> 00:25:29.730 to the bargaining table. The legal fight may 00:25:29.730 --> 00:25:32.009 have had setbacks, but the political victory 00:25:32.009 --> 00:25:34.069 ultimately led to a groundbreaking settlement 00:25:34.069 --> 00:25:36.349 that did secure equal pay and revenue sharing 00:25:36.349 --> 00:25:38.759 for the national teams. Beyond the economics, 00:25:38.980 --> 00:25:42.799 Rapinoe has been this enduring voice for LGBTQIA 00:25:42.799 --> 00:25:45.960 plus advocacy. She publicly came out way back 00:25:45.960 --> 00:25:49.259 in 2012, which provided huge high profile visibility 00:25:49.259 --> 00:25:51.920 for the queer community in elite sports at a 00:25:51.920 --> 00:25:54.099 time when that was much less common. That visibility 00:25:54.099 --> 00:25:56.519 was crucial. She actively supported organizations 00:25:56.519 --> 00:26:00.390 like GLSEN and Athlete Ally. She joined the latter 00:26:00.390 --> 00:26:03.269 as an ambassador in 2013 and was recognized with 00:26:03.269 --> 00:26:05.069 the Board of Directors Award from the Los Angeles 00:26:05.069 --> 00:26:07.970 Gay and Lesbian Center in 2012. She understood 00:26:07.970 --> 00:26:10.710 that simply existing openly and successfully 00:26:10.710 --> 00:26:13.789 was a powerful form of activism. And her advocacy 00:26:13.789 --> 00:26:16.130 has extended specifically to transgender rights, 00:26:16.230 --> 00:26:18.690 which is, as we know, an extremely volatile political 00:26:18.690 --> 00:26:21.579 topic today. And she's taken a definitive and 00:26:21.579 --> 00:26:23.700 unwavering stance on it. She's characterized 00:26:23.700 --> 00:26:26.200 bills that ban transgender women from sports 00:26:26.200 --> 00:26:28.960 as an effort to, quote, legislate away people's 00:26:28.960 --> 00:26:32.079 full humanity. She consistently uses her platform 00:26:32.079 --> 00:26:34.460 to advocate for inclusion and to fight against 00:26:34.460 --> 00:26:37.019 discriminatory legislation, often facing really 00:26:37.019 --> 00:26:39.480 intense public scrutiny as a result. And tying 00:26:39.480 --> 00:26:41.960 this back to her personal narrative, her relationship 00:26:41.960 --> 00:26:46.240 with the WNBA superstar Sue Bird is a major cultural 00:26:46.240 --> 00:26:49.099 milestone. They started dating in late 2016, 00:26:49.519 --> 00:26:52.259 got engaged in 2020 and they really became a 00:26:52.259 --> 00:26:54.799 sporting power couple. Their shared public identity 00:26:54.799 --> 00:26:58.099 provides immense cultural representation. I mean, 00:26:58.119 --> 00:27:00.519 they achieved a groundbreaking moment by becoming 00:27:00.519 --> 00:27:02.779 the first same -sex couple ever featured on the 00:27:02.779 --> 00:27:05.900 cover of ESPN's The Body Issue back in 2018. 00:27:06.059 --> 00:27:08.559 They just normalized queer partnership at the 00:27:08.559 --> 00:27:11.119 highest level of professional sports, which offers 00:27:11.119 --> 00:27:13.799 inspiration and visibility to millions. And we 00:27:13.799 --> 00:27:15.680 should circle back one more time to her formative 00:27:15.680 --> 00:27:18.380 years. The sources explicitly confirm that her 00:27:18.380 --> 00:27:20.640 older brother Brian's struggles with incarceration, 00:27:21.000 --> 00:27:23.190 his involvement with white supremacist groups 00:27:23.190 --> 00:27:26.009 inside the prison system that all profoundly 00:27:26.009 --> 00:27:28.710 informed her very strong views on racial justice. 00:27:29.009 --> 00:27:31.930 This connection adds this crucial layer of authenticity 00:27:31.930 --> 00:27:34.690 and vulnerability to her activism. Her commitment 00:27:34.690 --> 00:27:37.009 isn't theoretical. It's rooted in seeing how 00:27:37.009 --> 00:27:39.309 systemic failures affect the people closest to 00:27:39.309 --> 00:27:41.589 you. It just makes her position on criminal justice 00:27:41.589 --> 00:27:44.450 reform rooted in this complex lived experience, 00:27:44.750 --> 00:27:47.490 not just some political ideology. And finally, 00:27:47.569 --> 00:27:49.910 her direct political and philanthropic engagement 00:27:49.910 --> 00:27:53.029 is really broad. She endorsed Elizabeth Warren 00:27:53.029 --> 00:27:55.490 in the 2020 Democratic presidential primaries, 00:27:55.589 --> 00:27:58.269 showing an active political preference. She also 00:27:58.269 --> 00:28:00.470 hosted a panel with frontline workers at the 00:28:00.470 --> 00:28:03.410 2020 Democratic National Convention. And she's 00:28:03.410 --> 00:28:05.730 committed financially, too. She's a member of 00:28:05.730 --> 00:28:08.369 the Common Goal campaign, where she pledges 1 00:28:08.369 --> 00:28:11.730 % of her wages to soccer -related charities all 00:28:11.730 --> 00:28:14.359 over the world. She was also extremely vocal 00:28:14.359 --> 00:28:16.819 in the political sphere on women's rights, publicly 00:28:16.819 --> 00:28:19.640 criticizing the overturning of Roe v. Wade in 00:28:19.640 --> 00:28:22.720 2022. Yeah, she had signed an amicus brief supporting 00:28:22.720 --> 00:28:25.079 abortion rights the year before that. Her life 00:28:25.079 --> 00:28:27.740 is just a seamless integration of athletic performance 00:28:27.740 --> 00:28:30.640 and broad political action. So her impact is 00:28:30.640 --> 00:28:32.880 validated not just by the trophy she won, but 00:28:32.880 --> 00:28:34.920 by the highest civilian and cultural honors a 00:28:34.920 --> 00:28:38.000 person can receive. 2019 was her year of the 00:28:38.000 --> 00:28:41.140 Triple Crown. She secured the Ballon d 'Or Feminine, 00:28:41.180 --> 00:28:44.240 the Best FIFA Women's Player, and Sports Illustrated's 00:28:44.240 --> 00:28:47.059 Sportsperson of the Year. And those awards are 00:28:47.059 --> 00:28:50.559 so significant because they recognized not just 00:28:50.559 --> 00:28:52.799 the six goals she scored in the World Cup. They 00:28:52.799 --> 00:28:55.619 recognized the moral leadership she exerted at 00:28:55.619 --> 00:28:57.779 the same time. Winning the Sports Illustrated 00:28:57.779 --> 00:28:59.960 honor especially, that was a recognition that 00:28:59.960 --> 00:29:02.319 she was the most influential sports figure globally 00:29:02.319 --> 00:29:04.640 that year because she was using her platform 00:29:04.640 --> 00:29:07.960 to force change. And her legacy was truly cemented 00:29:07.960 --> 00:29:11.079 in July 2022 when she received the Presidential 00:29:11.079 --> 00:29:14.000 Medal of Freedom from President Joe Biden. That 00:29:14.000 --> 00:29:16.259 is the nation's highest civilian honor. It's 00:29:16.259 --> 00:29:18.440 a huge distinction. The White House specifically 00:29:18.440 --> 00:29:21.359 cited her advocacy for gender equity, racial 00:29:21.359 --> 00:29:25.559 justice, and LGBTQIA plus rights. They stated 00:29:25.559 --> 00:29:27.460 she was being honored for her commitment to these 00:29:27.460 --> 00:29:30.160 ideals both on and off the field. It officially 00:29:30.160 --> 00:29:32.980 enshrined her activist legacy into American national 00:29:32.980 --> 00:29:35.539 history. And her cultural presence just exploded 00:29:35.539 --> 00:29:37.740 after that. She was the first openly gay woman 00:29:37.740 --> 00:29:40.019 featured in the Sports Illustrated swimsuit issue 00:29:40.019 --> 00:29:42.670 in 29th time. She's on the covers of Marie Claire 00:29:42.670 --> 00:29:45.289 InStyle Sports Illustrated. She successfully 00:29:45.289 --> 00:29:47.529 navigated that transition from being a sports 00:29:47.529 --> 00:29:50.430 star to being a genuine mainstream cultural icon. 00:29:50.670 --> 00:29:53.390 And she leveraged that platform masterfully. 00:29:53.470 --> 00:29:55.190 She wasn't just doing, you know, puff pieces. 00:29:55.450 --> 00:29:57.970 She became a regular presence on major political 00:29:57.970 --> 00:30:00.450 and mainstream talk shows. The Daily Show, The 00:30:00.450 --> 00:30:02.950 Rachel Maddow Show, Meet the Press. She used 00:30:02.950 --> 00:30:05.150 these appearances to discuss policy, systemic 00:30:05.150 --> 00:30:08.150 injustice and political issues. She effectively 00:30:08.150 --> 00:30:10.980 became a major political commentator. in addition 00:30:10.980 --> 00:30:13.059 to being an athlete. Her personal story became 00:30:13.059 --> 00:30:15.500 a high -value commodity in itself. Her memoir, 00:30:15.720 --> 00:30:18.339 One Life, which came out in 2020, became a New 00:30:18.339 --> 00:30:20.160 York Times bestseller. And it was immediately 00:30:20.160 --> 00:30:23.140 optioned by Sony Pictures Television for adaptation 00:30:23.140 --> 00:30:26.519 into a scripted TV series. Her life narrative 00:30:26.519 --> 00:30:29.000 is seen as this pivotal story of modern American 00:30:29.000 --> 00:30:32.039 sport and culture. Her influence spans all demographics. 00:30:32.460 --> 00:30:35.079 She's been in the EA Sports FIFA video game series 00:30:35.079 --> 00:30:37.240 since FIFA 16, which was the first time they 00:30:37.240 --> 00:30:39.839 ever included women players. And she was immortalized 00:30:39.839 --> 00:30:43.619 in plastic form in Lego's Icons of Play set in 00:30:43.619 --> 00:30:47.000 2023. She is genuinely integrated into global 00:30:47.000 --> 00:30:49.339 pop culture from high politics all the way down 00:30:49.339 --> 00:30:51.559 to children's toys. We also have to address her 00:30:51.559 --> 00:30:55.059 status as a fashion and style icon. Vogue noted 00:30:55.059 --> 00:30:56.819 how she intentionally developed her signature 00:30:56.819 --> 00:30:59.980 look and that swagger. Her aesthetic became completely 00:30:59.980 --> 00:31:02.819 inseparable from her brand of defiance and confidence. 00:31:03.200 --> 00:31:05.660 And her high -profile endorsements reflect this 00:31:05.660 --> 00:31:08.240 cultural cachet. She has major contracts with 00:31:08.240 --> 00:31:11.819 Nike, Samsung, Subway, Hulu. But maybe the most 00:31:11.819 --> 00:31:14.460 culturally symbolic one was her announcement 00:31:14.460 --> 00:31:16.759 as one of the new faces of Victoria's Secret 00:31:16.759 --> 00:31:20.200 in 2021. Why is that Victoria's Secret endorsement 00:31:20.200 --> 00:31:22.779 so significant? Well, it represented a massive 00:31:22.779 --> 00:31:25.410 cultural pivot for that brand. Victoria's Secret 00:31:25.410 --> 00:31:28.410 had, for decades, been synonymous with this unattainable 00:31:28.410 --> 00:31:31.230 angel standard of beauty. Right. By bringing 00:31:31.230 --> 00:31:33.589 in Rapinoe, an outspoken, physically powerful, 00:31:33.849 --> 00:31:36.990 openly gay athlete activist, they were signaling 00:31:36.990 --> 00:31:39.130 this major shift toward embracing diversity, 00:31:39.369 --> 00:31:41.569 inclusion, and strength over their traditional 00:31:41.569 --> 00:31:44.569 hyper -sexualized marketing. Rapinoe wasn't just 00:31:44.569 --> 00:31:46.390 selling clothes. She was symbolizing a cultural 00:31:46.390 --> 00:31:49.589 shift in ideals. It's a perfect capstone to her 00:31:49.589 --> 00:31:52.150 undeniable cultural footprint. And let's not 00:31:52.150 --> 00:31:54.869 forget the pure whimsy of it all either. The 00:31:54.869 --> 00:31:57.230 ticker tape parades in New York City in both 00:31:57.230 --> 00:32:01.089 2015 and 2019. And that Northern California farm 00:32:01.089 --> 00:32:03.890 that created an entire corn maze shaped in the 00:32:03.890 --> 00:32:06.289 outline of her face. I remember that. In 2015, 00:32:06.630 --> 00:32:09.529 that is a level of visibility, a level of cultural 00:32:09.529 --> 00:32:12.089 penetration that very few figures ever achieve. 00:32:12.410 --> 00:32:15.069 So the legacy of Megan Rapinoe is this magnificent 00:32:15.069 --> 00:32:18.289 synthesis. On the field, she was a generational 00:32:18.289 --> 00:32:20.650 soccer talent. We know her for her crafty play, 00:32:20.829 --> 00:32:23.349 the technical beauty of the Olympicos, the precise 00:32:23.349 --> 00:32:27.930 game -winning crosses. And off the field, she 00:32:27.930 --> 00:32:30.609 was defined by an unwavering, outspoken commitment 00:32:30.609 --> 00:32:34.430 to social justice, especially for LGBTQIA plus 00:32:34.430 --> 00:32:36.799 rights and for equal pay. Her career was really 00:32:36.799 --> 00:32:39.299 a sustained decade -long challenge to the status 00:32:39.299 --> 00:32:41.980 quo. She demanded institutional change from U 00:32:41.980 --> 00:32:44.519 .S. soccer, and she demanded ethical accountability 00:32:44.519 --> 00:32:47.019 from the nation as a whole. Her legacy is this 00:32:47.019 --> 00:32:49.339 constant blend of political pressure and athletic 00:32:49.339 --> 00:32:51.400 excellence. She proved that you don't have to 00:32:51.400 --> 00:32:53.380 choose between performance and principle. Yet, 00:32:53.440 --> 00:32:55.700 as we noted, her career concluded not with that 00:32:55.700 --> 00:32:58.000 golden trophy lift and a perfect farewell. It 00:32:58.000 --> 00:33:00.799 ended with a sudden, devastating Achilles injury 00:33:00.799 --> 00:33:04.160 just minutes into her final club match. And that 00:33:04.160 --> 00:33:06.539 came after a painful missed penalty kick in her 00:33:06.539 --> 00:33:09.440 final World Cup appearance. Which brings us to 00:33:09.440 --> 00:33:12.079 a final, provocative thought for you to mull 00:33:12.079 --> 00:33:15.539 over. Rapinoe's entire career was built on confronting 00:33:15.539 --> 00:33:18.539 the messy realities of life, from her own family 00:33:18.539 --> 00:33:22.180 trauma to systemic inequalities. Does the public's 00:33:22.180 --> 00:33:24.680 inherent demand for a clean, triumphant narrative, 00:33:24.759 --> 00:33:27.859 a perfect exit, does that diminish the true significance 00:33:27.859 --> 00:33:30.279 of a legacy that was built on challenging the 00:33:30.279 --> 00:33:33.200 status quo, even when the final athletic moments 00:33:33.200 --> 00:33:36.059 are defined by loss and by pain? When the greatest 00:33:36.059 --> 00:33:38.380 athletes don't get the fairytale ending, how 00:33:38.380 --> 00:33:40.819 do we measure the victory redefined that they 00:33:40.819 --> 00:33:43.039 achieved outside of the traditional scoring column? 00:33:43.259 --> 00:33:45.660 It's a vital question to consider. It is. Thank 00:33:45.660 --> 00:33:48.000 you for diving deep with us today into the remarkable 00:33:48.000 --> 00:33:50.079 life and legacy of Megan Rapinoe.