Megan Rapinoe is the United States Women’s National Team forward who drew much conservative fire for her on- and off-field political antics, particularly agitation surrounding the National Anthem and “equal pay” for the men’s and women’s soccer teams. She’s also the one who, likely because of that reputation, drew a huge amount of fire for missing a penalty kick during the USWNT’s lost game to Sweden and, after missing, laughing.
Rapinoe addressed the loss and team in a post on Instagram, in which she was mainly positive about the team and said little about the tournament, other than that the game is “beautiful” even in cruel moments, and did not specifically address the now-infamous miss.
Beginning, she said, “This game is so beautiful, even in its cruelest moments. This group was so very special, and I am immensely proud of every single one of us. This team is in special hands as I walk away, just like it always was, and always will be. Because that is what this team is all about. We lay it all out on the line every single time. Fighting with everything that we have, for everything we deserve, for every person we possibly can.”
She then added, “It has been my honor to play for our country, with so many incredible woman, for so many years. Thank you, a million times over. ❤️”
Her mostly positive post comes after she was roundly ridiculed on social media for the miss and loss to Sweden. Former President Donald Trump, for example, took to Truth Social to say, “The ‘shocking and totally unexpected’ loss by the U.S. Women’s Soccer Team to Sweden is fully emblematic of what is happening to our once great Nation under Crooked Joe Biden. Many of our players were openly hostile to America – No other country behaved in such a manner, or even close. WOKE EQUALS FAILURE.”
Similarly, conservative commentator Megyn Kelly ridiculed Megan Rapinoe’s failure, saying, “She couldn’t execute. “She was too focused on her wokeism, it trickled down to her troops, and now they’re losers. It was a miss, it was a loss, and it was the end of her career. And good. Goodbye. I won’t miss her or her leadership.”
On the same note, the Daily Wire’s Ben Shapiro shredded Rapinoe for her wokeness after the lost game, saying, “she’s most famous for having blue hair and also for really hating America. I mean, the national anthem is bad and America is a deeply sexist and racist place, even though they’re paying her way too much money to play a sport no one has ever watched, except once every four years when we all pretend to be interested in women’s soccer and all the rest of it.”
President Biden, in contrast, praised the team on Twitter, saying, “you’ve made your country proud. Congratulations on an incredible run. This team is something special and I’m looking forward to seeing how you continue to inspire Americans with your grit and determination – on and off the field.”
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