Acknowledgments, applause, and celebrations. The USWNT catapulted its identity to another level after it won the Olympic gold medal. The soccer fraternity praises them for their playing style, conduct, and desire to win. Thus, with all the credit to Emma Hayes, the players deserve some commendation. And one major player of the yesteryears, Megan Rapinoe, recognized the team’s success.

For some weeks now, the USWNT legends have come forward to speak about the team’s triumph. Legends like Carli Lloyd and Becky Sauerbrunn have praised the manager for leading the team from the front. And now Megan Rapinoe comes into the act. In fact, she loved the team’s performance, showering them with high praise.

She stated, “I feel so lucky to have had the career that I have had. I have played in all those big moments. And I feel like I was really able to go and just be a fan.” She detailed the fan girl in her to cheer her team when they played on the big stage. Notably, Rapinoe became a major part of the USWNT during her career. From the wings, she cut inside to score trademark curling goals, time and time again. Yet, in a surprising claim, she mentioned how the current USWNT team was a level above them.

“I could never play on the team right now. Like they are so much better than we ever were. They are so good,” Megan Rapinoe said. Right now, the USWNT playing squad looks formidable. They have Trinity Rodman, Sophia Smith, and Mallory Swanson (Triple Espresso) raking in goal after goal for the team, and the entire squad delivering at every time of asking.

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Rapinoe added, “They were so fun to watch. It caught fire in this really beautiful way. To be able to just go and be a fan and witness greatness, to be honest, was an incredible experience. I look forward to doing it again.” As much as she loved watching the USWNT play from the sidelines, is it possible that she wouldn’t actually make the current team?

Well, let’s pick the strongest team Rapinoe played in, which was the 2019 World Cup-winning squad. At the time, Megan Rapinoe was arguably the best player on that squad. She scored the winning goal in the 2019 World Cup and was the Ballon dÓr Feminin in 2019. To top that, Rapinoe won the Golden Boot and Golden Ball in 2019. She was special for a long time in leading the team from the front and had her own way of doing things. But there’s no denying that, at the time, she was one of the best players in the world.

So, now, with Sophia Smith often playing on the left wing, it’s not a stretch to say that – if she wanted to – Megan Rapinoe could reassume her role as the team’s left winger. However, while there’s no doubt that she will continue to be just as effective, it won’t be as easy as just coming into the team and playing like she used to. It won’t be like the old times because the team isn’t the same…

Before the Olympics, Megan Rapinoe’s former teammate highlighted a flaw in the team

Just a couple of months before the USWNT won the 2024 Olympics, the team saw a significant change – a new manager. Emma Hayes left Chelsea to lead the USWNT, hoping to take them back to winning ways. While she did precisely that – especially after the team’s 2023 World Cup woes – there were doubts to begin with.

In the build-up to the Paris Games, Carli Lloyd made an appearance on the Up & Adams Show and said, “The biggest thing that is different within this team is throughout the years of the national team, there’s always been one or two players that have been the stars around this team, that would be able to will the team to victory by individual brilliance… There’s nobody that is out there [in USWNT] where you’re saying, ‘Okay, this player is really intimidating. We’ve got to shut them down.’” 

For her, players like Alex Morgan, Megan Rapinoe, and Abby Wambach came in clutch whenever the team needed them. And the opposition always kept one eye on them, no matter what was transpiring on the pitch. Although this was a concern going into the Olympics, Trinity Rodman, Sophia Smith, and Mallory Swanson (among others) proved they could show up for the team every time.

So, when it comes to Megan Rapinoe making the current squad, it’s likely that she will. But considering how different the squad is now compared to when she was actively playing, it’s not out of the question that Rapinoe wouldn’t be the first choice for left winger. That said, for now, she’s just a fan who enjoys soccer. Do you think she could have fit in the USWNT squad?