Megan Rapinoe got injured just minutes into what was announced beforehand as her final game, so instead of getting to play one final game before her career ended, she hobbled off of the field and mostly sat on the sidelines suffering from a non-contact injury.
Speaking about the injury after the game, Rapinoe said, “Pretty sure I tore my Achilles, so the worst possible outcome. I mean, just obviously devastating to go out in a final so early. I know it’s my last game and that is devastating as well, but to go out so early, that also changes things. It takes a sub off a bench. Taking one of your best players off the field is not ideal.”
Then she alleged that her injury is somehow proof that there isn’t a God, telling the interviewer, “I mean, I don’t deserve this, I’ll tell you that much. I’m not a religious person or anything, but if there is a God, this is proof that there isn’t.”
Watch her here:
Predictably, that comment about her injury being “proof” that God isn’t real led to Rapinoe getting absolutely thrashed on social media, with conservative commentators blasting her for her narcissism and spreading of atheism. Former ESPN personality Sage Steele, for example, said, “Narcissism at its finest.”
Similarly, conservative X personality Collin Rugg called Rapinoe a clown, saying, “NEW: Woke soccer player Megan Rapinoe says there is no way God could possibly exist because she got hurt while playing soccer. In the last game of her career, Rapinoe got injured six minutes into the match. In a post-game press conference, she said she didn’t “deserve” to be injured and her leg being injured proves God isn’t real. “I mean, I don’t deserve this, I’ll tell you that much. I’m not a religious person or anything, but if there is a God, this is proof that there isn’t.” Clown.”
Rugg then added that he thinks Rapinoe will keep trying to draw attention to herself, saying, “I have a feeling she will do something ridiculous every few months so people don’t forget about her. She really seems like a “hey look at me” type of person.”
This isn’t the first time Steele and Rapinoe have bickered. Previously, Rapinoe attacked Steele’s stance on transgender athletes in women’s sports, and Steele fired back at her critics in response to a tweet from Sunday NFL Countdown host Sam Ponder. Ponder had attacked Rapinoe’s claim that Steele’s opposition to transgender participation in women’s sports is violence, saying, “Sage says bio males shouldn’t compete in female sports and now she’s to blame for violence? This is an attempt to silence good-faith discussion and debate. Disagree passionately, say she’s wrong (& why)… but to claim she is responsible for violence is absurd.”
Steele, in response, said, “Yes Sam…it’s absurd. And predictable! This is what happens when ppl allow their emotions to get in the way of FACTS & SCIENCE. Esp when they’re fighting to keep a false narrative alive. You said it best after Armour attacked you: “biology is not bigotry” #SaveWomensSports”
Featured image credit: By The White House – P20210324AS-2273, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=104164132
"*" indicates required fields