U.S. women’s national team players backed their Canadian counterparts Wednesday amid the ongoing dispute between Canada’s national women’s team — which said it will play SheBelieves Cup matches “in protest” — and its federation. Here’s what you need to know:
- Becky Sauerbrunn, Alex Morgan and Megan Rapinoe all addressed the team’s support of Canada’s players during media availability ahead of the teams’ SheBelieves Cup opener, with USWNT coach Vlatko Andonovski saying the team is still expecting a strong performance from Canada on Thursday.
- All three players said they understood the exact challenge Canadian players are facing, though Sauerbrunn noted that what they need now might not have been what the USWNT needed in their fight for equality.
- Said Morgan: “Canada’s going through it all while still trying to do their job, and play soccer at the highest level. Any way we can support them and try to ease their minds in any way, so they can focus on the game and be that fierce rivalry on the field is what we want.”
Backstory
Players, including Jessie Fleming, shared a post that summarized their dispute with the federation — stressing that this went beyond compensation for the players.
“There are two larger issues that exist within Canada Soccer,”…
