“An Arrogant Piece of Work”: USWNT Star Megan Rapinoe Faced Heavy Backlash Over Her Coldhearted Autograph at the ESPYS 2019

A luminary personality, Megan Rapinoe is a member of the USWNT and an Olympic gold medalist. As a social activist, she has advocated for issues such as equal pay and gender discrimination from time to time. Nevertheless, this has often led to major backlash. Additionally, Megan was criticized on Twitter in 2019 for giving a cold response during an autograph.

It was not the first time she had been subjected to repercussions. Previously, she had suffered from sitting on her knees during the National Anthem in her matches. Her protest was in response to racial discrimination.

The ‘cold-autograph’ repercussion on Megan Rapinoe

During the ESPY Awards in Los Angeles, a young fan asked Megan for an autograph on the ball. Megan smiled at him, then handed him the ball without looking at him; then, people on Twitter referred to it as a cold gesture. ABC Networks uploaded the video of Megan with a caption, “Can we get a signed ball, too @mPinoe ?!#ESPYS.”

In response to her gesture, British broadcaster Piers Morgan reacted. Piers wrote, “Wow. Doesn’t even look at him. such an arrogant piece of work.”

Meanwhile, there were so many tweets criticizing her that one user wrote, “You know what is really sad? She could be an amazing star and leader if only she had respect. I doubt that she even respects herself.”

Whereas, some retweeted the video while calling Megan rude, “Her 15 minutes of fame soon be over, back to being just a rude, horrible woman, to be honest not many ppl now who she is anyway #stuckupcunt.”

READ MORE: “Affected His Understanding of the World”: Megan Rapinoe Changed Life Perspective of Three Time Oscar Winner’s Son

Also, Assistant Head Coach and UEFA Pro Licensed Coach David Dunn reacted to the video and wrote, “Seriously though, she doesn’t even look at the young kid! At least the Lionesses have class, and I’m sure none of the players would have acted like this.”

In another tweet, he added, “The more I see her, the more I dislike her! The kid should have volleyed it back in her grid !” The soccer star was the subject of many more comments, but some loyal fans stood up for her by stating the truth.

The People who defended the soccer star

Several positive comments were defending Megan amid many negative comments. A user described how athletes have their own time and personal space. The user wrote, “Dear Angry People of Twitter, (1) Celebrities’ time, bodies, etc. belong to them. Not anyone else. They don’t owe anyone anything. (2) approaching someone for an autograph at the ESPYs, 16 seconds before live air is not great. It was a kind gesture of her to sign the ball.”

Meanwhile, another user penned, “Not rude, not horrible. Very smart, great athlete & teammate. She smiles at the kid, friend shouts to her, she reacts. PA starts a count down, she reacts. Let her have her moment, best player, most goals, World Cup. Talk when you do that.”

Throughout the comment section, one person wrote the real fact he wrote “They haven’t slept in like 48 hours and are jet lagged PLUS the show is about to start – they were literally counting down, so she was probably anxious. Judgemental a** b***h.” Being an athlete, it isn’t easy to schedule everything from workout regimes to award shows. Some people even advised her to learn from footballer, Linoel Messi the proper way to treat fans.

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