“Slap in the Face to Women’s Football”: Megan Rapinoe Called Out FIFA for Disrespecting Women’s Team in 2014

‘The Presidential Medal of Freedom awardee, Megan Rapinoe is arguably one of the best players on the US Women’s football team. She always makes the headlines for being vocal about a variety of social issues. Megan’s charisma on and off the field made her very famous.

Rapinoe was a member of the US Women’s team that won the gold medal in the 2012 London Olympic games. She is one of the most experienced players on the team and serves as the co-captain of the Women’s National Soccer team. However, Megan’s unapologetic personality is what keeps her in the news.

Megan Rapinoe opens up about playing on artificial turf

2014 was not a very successful year for Megan Rapinoe. A couple of injuries slowed down Rapinoe’s comeback. Her team OL Reign has their training sessions on artificial turf which was believed to be the reason for her slow recovery from injuries. In 2014, FIFA had given the hosting rights to Canada to host the Women’s World Cup. The surface on which the majority of the matches would be held was artificial turf. 

However, this decision by FIFA angered Rapinoe. “I think it’s absolutely absurd that we’re playing on turf and it’s really a slap in the face to women’s football by FIFA and just a show of disrespect”, said Rapinoe calling out FIFA’s decision for disrespecting the Women’s team. “I understand for the league not every team is going to be able to have a grass surface, but I think FIFA made $2 billion on the World Cup,” said Rapinoe on how FIFA should have had a better organization, as they were making good money.

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According to Rapinoe, a natural grass surface is the best for soccer. She felt that the quality and purity of the game do not remain the same on artificial turf. “There’s an aspect to the purity of the game and the quality of the game that is played on grass that is different.”

Megan’s advocacy for equality

Megan Rapinoe has been an advocate for social issues like equality and gender discrimination. She always uses her influence to spread awareness on issues that affect society. In 2019, Megan Rapinoe along with other members of the US National Women’s Soccer team sued the United States Soccer Federation in hopes of achieving equal pay and ending gender-based pay discrimination.

While testifying to the US Congress via video conferencing, Megan narrated how the Women’s teams’ accomplishments exceeded the Men’s team. They advocated for adequate compensation for the work done by the team.

WATCH THIS STORY: Megan Rapinoe, Lindsay Von, Chloe Kim, Allyson Felix, and Other Olympians appear at ESPYS 2022.

With her ongoing fight for equality, she inspires a lot of other athletes to use their influence positively and speak up for the common people.