The USA superstar who transcended women’s football
If there was any footballer who embodied US Soccer and its power status in women’s football, it would be Alex Morgan.
A footballing superstar, a celebrity on the red carpet, a cover star of global fashion magazines, an advocate for equal rights, a spokesperson for diverse groups, an inspiration for mothers and, simply, a winner.
There are very few sportswomen who have elevated their sports at the same speed and magnitude that Morgan has.
She announced her retirement on Thursday and it marks a significant end of an era for US Soccer.
Morgan is one of the great names of their second golden era – the winners of back-to-back World Cups in 2015 and 2019 and Olympic gold medallists.
Her individual honours roll onto a second page and she has won the game’s biggest domestic trophies including a league title in America and France, and the Women’s Champions League with Lyon in 2017.
Twice named US Soccer Athlete of the Year, a three-time finalist for Fifa Best player of the year and included in the FifPro World XI on six occasions, Morgan’s career has been nothing short of sensational.
Motherhood, equal pay and using her platform
Morgan’s success has coincided with a significant period of growth in women’s football.
As her achievements on the pitch helped draw eyes to the game, she capitalised on the spotlight being shone on female athletes.
From magazine covers to advertising billboards and even a statue in New York City’s Fox Square, Morgan has been the face of US Soccer.
She has a degree from Berkeley, in political economy, having also authored a series of children’s books.
During the announcement of her retirement, Morgan revealed she was expecting her second child.
After becoming a mother, she continued to perform at the highest level, spearheading the USA attack at least summer’s World Cup while caring for daughter Charlie, then only three-years old.
Her insights on motherhood have helped accelerate support within clubs, with several players including West Ham’s Katrina Gorry, Chelsea’s Melanie Leupolz and ex-Jamaica international Cheyna Matthews citing Morgan as a role model.
Aware of her stature outside the game, Morgan has not shied away from using her platform, calling in 2021 for the National Women’s Soccer League to end the “systemic failure” that enabled a decade of alleged sexual misconduct and harassment.
That came two years after Morgan was one of the leading figures in a lawsuit battle for equal pay, equal prize money and equal working conditions within US Soccer.
Last year, she questioned the moral decision to allow Saudi Arabia’s tourism authority to sponsor the Women’s World Cup.
There has even been the suggestions that, when Morgan signed a surprise short-term deal with Tottenham in 2020, she encouraged the club to improve the women’s team’s facilities and speed up their transition to a full-time training model.
That came after Spurs announced Morgan’s signing on a large screen outside a Leicester Square cinema in London.
Earning the tea, the 13-0 and her legacy
There is no doubt Morgan’s influence has spread far beyond the football pitch and the USA.
Jeff Kassouf, co-author of ‘The Making of the Women’s World Cup’, previously told BBC Sport Morgan was “arguably the most recognisable woman who plays a team sport” in the world.
But there have been moments on the pitch that will live long in the memory, alongside her trophy success.
When England and the USA locked heads in a rivalry-fuelled World Cup semi-final in 2019, she scored the winning goal and celebrated by pretending to drink a cup of tea.
“Not since Boston dumped it in the sea has England been dissed with tea like this,” declared the front page of the following day’s New York Post.
Former US presidential candidate and ex-first lady Hillary Clinton also posted on social media at the time: “Congrats to the #USWNT for earning that tea.”
In that same World Cup, Morgan scored five goals as the USA beat Thailand 13-0 and later had to defend their celebrations, who some described as disrespectful.
“These are goals we have dreamt of our entire life,” Morgan said at the time, emphasising the USA’s winning mentality which kept them at the top for so long.
She also scored a crucial last-minute goal in the London 2012 Olympics semi-final and the USA went on to win gold, defeating Japan 2-1 in the final.
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But while Morgan is a global superstar on and off the pitch, her persona has often been quiet, reserved and understated.
When she has chosen to speak, people have listened. And when she has performed, her team has so often won.
“Success for me is defined by never giving up and giving your all. I’ve been doing just that,” said Morgan in the video she posted, external to announce her retirement.
“I’ve been giving my all every single day on the field, giving my all in the relentless push for global investment in women’s sport – because we deserve that – giving my all in my various businesses beyond the soccer field and giving my all to my daughter Charlie.”
Women’s “soccer” has developed considerably due to her influence and there is now a generation of girls calling Alex Morgan their idol and not Lionel Messi. That in itself is some legacy.