September 6 – Expecting a second child, American star Alex Morgan, one of the most prolific goals scorers in the game, announced her retirement on Thursday.
The 35-year-old San Diego Wave striker posted an emotional video on social media to reveal that this weekend’s match against the North Carolina Courage in the NWSL will be her last. She also disclosed that she is pregnant with a second child.
“This decision wasn’t easy, but at the beginning of 2024, I felt in my heart and soul that this was the last season that I would play soccer. Soccer has been a part of me for 30 years. It was one of the first things that I ever loved. And I gave everything to this sport. What I got in return was more than I could have ever dreamed of,” said Morgan.
“We’re changing lives and the impact we have on the next generation is irreversible and I’m proud in the hand I had in making that happen in pushing the game forward and leaving it in a place that I’m so happy and proud of.”
During her career, Morgan won the Women’s World Cup twice and claimed an Olympic gold medal at the 2012 Olympic Games in London. In 2015, Morgan and the United States defeated Japan 5-2 to win the global crown and four years later, they repeated the feat with a 2-0 win against the Netherlands in France.
Morgan scored 123 goals for the United States, ranking her all-time fifth of the American women’s team. She also provided 53 assists for the national team.
“Charlie came up to me the other day and said that when she grows up, she wants to be a soccer player,” said Morgan. “It just made me immensely proud, not because I wish for her to become a soccer player when she grows up, but because a pathway exists that even a 4-year-old can see now. We’re changing lives and the impact we have on the next generation is irreversible and I’m proud in the hand I had in making that happen, in pushing the game forward and leaving it in a place that I’m so happy and proud of.”
Off the field, Morgan was one of five players in 2016 to file a complaint for wage discrimination. In 2019, the United States women’s national team sued US Soccer and three years later the team won equal pay through a collective bargaining agreement that was settled on with the governing body.
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