The U.S. women’s national team has marched to the beat of its own drum over the years, winning two World Cups and an Olympic gold medal since 2012.
The Stars and Stripes in that span have played the beautiful game like few other sides. They’re swashbuckling, willing to move heaven and earth to spawn a numerical advantage. Delicate chipped passes swirl through the air. Fullbacks commit to the cause, racing beyond attackers to create gaps of space for their teammates to exploit.
And wingers … well, the wingers bring the flair.
It’s a position that has suited Megan Rapinoe perfectly over the course of her career. Donning the lily-white on the left-hand side for the Americans, she has spent much of her international career creating goals from nothing. She has 63 scores in 199 appearances for the U.S., a tally accentuated by her willingness to get into the box and launch darts into the far top and bottom corner.
MORE: When is Megan Rapinoe retiring? Projected last match for USA soccer legend
For the casual viewer, Rapinoe is a superstar. Yet she’s not expected to get much bump in this year’s World Cup.
The former FIFA Women’s Best Player winner is approaching the twilight of her career and has announced her impending retirement. But she clearly still has something to offer…
