Megan Rapinoe’s soccer playing career came to an abrupt end early in the 2023 NWSL Championship match. Having announced prior to the world cup that she would end her career at the end of the 2023 NWSL season, the Reign run to the NWSL Championship set up what could have been a glorious finish. Instead, her achilles was injured only a few minutes in and her Reign side dropped the final to Gotham FC. The early match injury knocked almost 90 minutes off of a possible story book ending, sending her to surgery and rehab on her achilles.
In the months since, Rapinoe has been rehabbing and healing up, finally returning to Seattle on February 15 to receive the Paul G. Allen Humanitarian Award at the 89th Annual Seattle Sports Star of the Year banquet. Joining her former teammates and coach at the ceremony, Rapinoe was reflective of her place in the history of women’s soccer, the state of the NWSL, injury rehab, and watching the preparations for the upcoming season of her former club and national team.
When last able to interview Megan last fall, she was still Megan Rapinoe the soccer player. How does she see herself now? Is it Megan the entrepreneur? Is it Megan the activist?
“Oh God. I think all of it. I’ve always liked to wear multiple hats and do multiple things. Yeah, I’m getting the question a lot now. What are you going to do next? And I’m like kind of the same thing I’ve been doing. I’m not going to be tied up with training every day. Definitely entrepreneur. Definitely. The activism part is just who I am for sure. But yeah, I kind of want to be in on this next phase of women’s sports. It’s very exciting.”
Now a few months post-op, Rapinoe was no longer in a cast or walking boot. Rehabbing an injury was not in and of itself new and different, but rehabbing without a season to get ready for is. Is she at peace with her retirement?
How is it watching and not participating in preseason or national team camps prepping for a major tournament year for the first time?
“The only thing is I’m not in on the drama and I’m not in on all. I want to be in the know. And I’m missing out on little things. Even saw the national team was together. I don’t want to be there because I know what it takes to be there and I’m way too tired for that still. But I just want to know everything that’s going on. Obviously, stay close to Laura and Lu and Jess. They give me all the tea. But I think it’s more the biggest moments that I’ll miss the most. But no preseason. I never even like to go to preseason anyway.”
The growth of women’s soccer and women’s sports in recent years has been rewarding.
“It’s so many people, so many players, so many people that have been in it for so long. But I know that my fingerprints are in there and that to me is the most impactful and important part of my career is now seeing what’s coming. The media deal for the NWSL was amazing. To see the final was amazing. New franchises, record signings, new stadium opening up. Like all of that is just a really big hat tip. Honestly, I kind of put the first eleven years of the NWSL in one pot and this is the next phase of it. So to be a part of that and just have it grow and have these players get what they deserve and play in the places they deserve and have the types of facilities and salaries and accommodations and all of that that they really deserve is just incredible to see. I can’t wait to see where this sport goes for us in the next five to ten years.”
“I just know what we were able to achieve in the environment that we had to achieve it in. I can’t wait to see what they do next. I mean, it looks like 20,000 at every game. It looks like more championships for the national team. It looks like huge media deals and players making a lot more money and fans having a different option for an experience in american sports. I think WNBA is doing an incredible job of providing that, and I think the NWSL is right on their heels, and I hope to see all the fans and all the supporters really show up in a big way this season.”
Seattle Reign FC begins the 2024 season March 17 against Washington Spirit at Lumen Field in Seattle.
