U.S. Women’s Soccer Team’s Antics Against America Turns Off Fans

Americans love sports just as much as any other country. However, where we draw the line, is when our team decides to wade into the political arena, and thinks they are going to make a statement that represents the rest of us as well. The U.S. Women’s Soccer team has a history of individual team members doing this and getting blowback for it. But apparently, some lessons are hard to learn, and the team is at it again.

The Women’s World Cup Soccer Tournament started on Saturday in Aukland. The winning team defeated Vietnam by a score of 3-0. However, what happened before the game has irked some fans. They are actively rooting for the other team. Fans were upset by the American women’s reaction when the “Star Spangled Banner,” was played. They were all silent except for a few team members.

One tweet read: “Can anyone help [the United States Women’s Soccer Team] learn the lyrics of the Star Spangled Banner, as the silence was deafening? Former NYPD Commissioner Bernard Kerik referred to the situation as “an international embarrassment.” He also said that no one should be allowed to wear or represent the American Flag if they don’t believe in it. “The majority of these people do not know the words”.

One of the first to do it on the U.S. women’s team was Megan Rapinoe, who stated in 2019 in an interview that she would never sing the national anthem again. That interview began to resurface and make the rounds on social media after Saturday’s game. She claimed that the meaning of the anthem had “changed dramatically” for her and that it had become a “somber moment” for “peaceful protest.” When asked if there was anything that might change her perspective on the meaning of the anthem for her, she stated,

The task would be huge. We would need to reform criminal justice and make more progress in the area of LGBTQ rights. We just have such a disparity in this country in so many different ways, inequality in so many different ways. I’ll probably never put my hand over my heart, I’ll probably never sing the national anthem again.

Social media showed that most soccer fans did not care about Rapinoe’s political views. People wanted to see that the United States represented itself in a dignified and respectful way. Many responses called out the players’ behavior on a world stage as “disgraceful,” and many expressed hope that the team would lose every game they played. Another response called for the team to get a “Bud Light” moment, referring to the disastrous drop in sales and revenue suffered by Bud Light after trans activist Dylan Mulvaney appeared on a Bud Light can, and customers promptly distanced themselves from the brand. The same respondent also suggested that sponsors should pull out of any associations with the team.

Megan Rapinoe has announced she will be retiring from soccer after this year’s Women’s World Cup. The whole team is a role model for millions of young girls and women who play soccer. It would be nice if they could remember that.

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