Courtesy of CNN
"For that young girl, go after anything and everything you can imagine. Do what you think is impossible.” -Alex Morgan
The impact Alex Morgan has made in women’s sports doesn’t end with her retirement.
Alex Morgan was a star on the United States Women’s National Team (USWNT) for 14 years, from 2010-2024, and served as the co-captain from 2018-2020 and in 2023. She also ranks fifth in all-time scoring for the USWNT. Morgan’s accolades include, but are certainly not limited to, gold and bronze Olympics medals from 2012 and 2016, FIFA World Cup wins in 2015 and 2019, a NWSL championship win in 2013, and the NWSL Golden Boot in 2022.
Morgan’s ability to inspire young athletes though, reaches far beyond just the soccer field.
Morgan is an advocate for gender equality in soccer and, along with her USWNT teammates, filed a lawsuit against U.S. Soccer on the basis of gender discrimination. Despite recently winning two World Cups, the USWNT players were paid less than half of what their male counterparts were earning. While members of the USWNT fought to close the pay gap in U.S. Soccer, they also created a stepping stone towards gender equality in sports, in both pay and treatment.
Morgan also spoke up during the National Women’s Soccer League abuse scandal in 2021, demanding an anti-harassment policy be implemented in the league. This new policy has gone on to hold coaches and staff accountable, encourage athletes on other country’s teams to speak up about similar treatment, and create a safer environment for athletes.
As far as Morgan’s plans go for retirement, she wants to continue to inspire and empower young girls in sports. Alongside Chloe Kim, Simone Manuel, and Sue Bird, Morgan founded TOGETHXR, a media company that “shatter[s] the often narrow depictions of women in the media with content featuring a diverse and inclusive community of game changers, culture shapers, thought leaders, and barrier breakers.” Through this platform, icons and trailblazers in women’s sports seek to bring more attention to women’s sports, uplift and inspire young women, and recognize pioneers in women’s sports.
Morgan recognizes the platform and influence she has, and uses it to uplift and empower other women, and improve the viewership, funding, conversation, and environment of women’s sports.
It was only fitting that in Morgan’s final moment on the soccer field, she had an assist on a goal. She was then substituted in the 13th minute of her final game.
Even when Morgan played her last game on September 8, she made history and an impact on women’s sports; it was the first time multiple media companies broadcasted a women’s sporting event at the same time. Hopefully this move, and Morgan continuing to campaign for women’s sports and women athletes, sets a precedent for the needed recognition of women’s sports going forward.
Morgan’s message for her team, the San Diego Wave, before her last game: Just be you.
Alex Morgan’s hard work and wins for women’s sports, on and off the field, has opened the door for young women in sports to just be themselves while playing and competing, with safer environments and proper recognition.
Courtesy of The San Diego Union-Tribune
Edited by Giana Robertaccio
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