She is an icon of the sport of football, one of its most successful players and a globally recognised star.
So how did former USWNT midfielder Megan Rapinoe end up being pictured with the shirt of the Dulwich Hamlet women’s team, a club in south-east London just promoted to the fourth tier of the English game?
The answer involves good contacts, excellent logistics and what one of the Dulwich players describes as the club’s “lightning in a bottle” potential.
If it was intended as a morale boost when the photo of World Cup winner and Olympic gold-medallist Rapinoe appeared on the club’s social media three days before the biggest fixture of their season, it worked.
Your club could never 😉 #DHFC 💖💙 #Spicy 🌶️ pic.twitter.com/xSyZqa8H04
— Dulwich Hamlet FC W (@DHFC_W) May 16, 2024
Dulwich beat Saltdean Women FC 5-1 on Sunday to be crowned champions and win promotion to the FA Women’s National League (Division 1, South East), sparking celebrations back at their home ground, which they share with the men’s team, at Champion Hill.
Getting the picture was not as straightforward as the team’s win, though.
“One of our players got a message from her friend who was watching (WNBA star) Caitlin Clark’s last game in Iowa and she was sat by Megan Rapinoe,”…
