We know that U.S. soccer star Megan Rapinoe isn't "f***ing" going to the White House if her team wins and President Trump invites them, but her fellow co-captain Alex Morgan is taking a bit of a softer approach to the controversy. Rapinoe may have made an individual splash about it, but they haven't discussed it yet as a team.
“I think we will make that decision after we finish Sunday’s game," Morgan said, calling all this chatter about the White House premature.
"But first we have to do business, and then I think you guys know the answer to the question anyways."
And that answer will probably be no, for Morgan has made no secret of the fact that she too despises Trump's policies. Asked if some members of the team would represent them at the White House while others stayed home, the captain couldn't say for sure.
“I can’t say 100 percent, but this team is very close and we have always made decisions together so I can’t really see us deciding to part in that way. But at the same time, if someone feels strongly then who are we to tell them to do or not do something."
Morgan is right to try and keep distractions to a minimum before the big game. As the president himself noted, the players first have to win the tournament before he extends an invitation.
Rapinoe's controversial World Cup started before her feud with Trump. She has brought quite a lot of criticism upon herself for refusing to recite the national anthem. When the president got wind of it, he said it was inappropriate.
"I think that I'm particularly and uniquely and very deeply American," she told ESPN this week in defense.
That's true when it comes to the USA's very patriotic on field displays. Rapinoe joined her teammates' wild celebrations during their 13-0 thrashing of Thailand. She then defended Morgan after a British soccer player criticized her for stopping on the sidelines to take a "sip of tea" after her go-ahead goal in the semi-final against England on Tuesday. Morgan's former Orlando Pride teammate, Lianne Sanderson, called her celebration "distasteful."
Alex Morgan is the new Queen of England after that tea celebrationpic.twitter.com/xxYxohBHK2
— Barstool Sports (@barstoolsports) July 2, 2019
"Wah, wah, wah," Rapinoe said of the backlash. "I mean, it’s like, we’re at the World Cup, what do you want us to do? This is the biggest stage, the biggest moment.”
Their next big moment comes this Sunday at 11 a.m., when the defending champs face the Netherlands in the 2019 World Cup final.