Megan Rapinoe, a figure in American football, quickly emerged injured from the last match of her career, the final of the United States championship, lost by her team OL Reign against NJ/NY Gotham (2-1), on Saturday in San Diego.
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Sitting on the pitch, her head in her jersey and tears in her eyes from the start of the match, Megan Rapinoe had certainly not imagined the final match of her career, which she could have ended by lifting her first cup. as a United States champion in California, the state where she grew up.
But on a slip that seemed innocuous, the 38-year-old attacker was injured on Saturday, November 11, and limped out at the 6e minute, given a standing ovation by the San Diego public and embraced by the captain of NY/NJ Gotham FC, Ali Krieger, another figure in American football who played his last match on Saturday.
“I felt a ‘pop’, then I couldn’t feel my Achilles tendon, I think I tore it, it’s really the worst imaginable. It’s horrible. To leave a final so early , I don’t deserve that, frankly. But hey, it’s life, it’s part of the game, I felt good before the match”, she commented after the match, with humor, and with her right foot placed in a protective boot.
“From now on I am a normal person, who will have to do a long rehabilitation, it’s killing me, it’s really the m…”
Committed
A few hours earlier, Rapinoe had appeared at Snapdragon Stadium in San Diego in style, dyed pink hair, sunglasses and a denim jacket, holding a speaker that played a classic of American hip-hop, “X gon’ give it to ya” by rapper DMX.
A song released in 2002, the year the striker from Redding began her career in Elk Grove, in the suburbs of Sacramento.
Twenty-one years later, Rapinoe leaves the field with two World Cups (2015 and 2019), a Ballon d’Or (2019), an Olympic gold medal (2012) and a status that goes beyond her sport.
The companion of ex-basketball star Sue Bird used her success as a platform for LGBT+ rights, against police violence against black people in the United States, and obtained equal pay with her teammates between men and women within Team USA.
Saturday, with the retirements of Rapinoe (38 years old, 203 caps and 63 goals) and Ali Krieger (39 years old, 108 caps), American women’s football experienced the end of an era, with players who knew how to put their sport, minor in the United States, at the forefront. The NWSL, the American women’s championship, is reaping the benefits and from next year will multiply its television revenues by 40 (240 million dollars over four years) and broadcast four times as many matches.
“Ready to go”
“It’s sad to end like this, but overall I feel happy with my career, lucky to have played for so long, with such incredible players, from several generations, to have been able to build friendships,” added Rapinoe. “I feel ready to go, it’s time. I’ve had an incredible career that I couldn’t have even dreamed of. I’m looking forward to my new role in the game as I leave the field but You will continue to pass me around.”
After the exit of the pink-haired star, Seattle’s OL Reign quickly suffered a second blow by conceding a goal from Williams (24e), before responding to 29e when Rose Lavelle won a face-off against Gotham’s guardian.
The New Jersey players regained the advantage definitively with the header from Esther’s corner (45+1), just after an OL goal was refused for offside.
The end of the match saw a few crazy minutes with the expulsion of Gotham goalkeeper, Mandy Haught, for a hand throw outside her area, offering a last well-placed free kick to OL Reign, but poorly taken , while defender Nealy Martin had put on the gloves.
With AFP
