USWNT great Alex Morgan announces retirement
United States women’s national team forward Alex Morgan is retiring, she announced in a social media video on Thursday.
Morgan also said that she is pregnant and expecting her second child. She said she will play one more game on Sunday, when San Diego Wave FC hosts the North Carolina Courage.
“I have so much clarity about this decision, and I am so happy to be able to finally tell you,” Morgan said in the video. “It has been a long time coming, and this decision wasn’t easy, but at the beginning of 2024 I felt in my heart and soul that this was the last season that I would play soccer.”
Morgan, 35, is a two-time World Cup champion and Olympic gold medalist. She ranks fifth in USWNT history with 123 goals scored in 224 caps. She was left off the USWNT’s 2024 Olympics roster despite starting for the team throughout the spring.
Morgan debuted for the USWNT in 2010. Later that year, she scored a crucial goal in Italy in a FIFA World Cup playoff to help the U.S. qualify for the 2011 World Cup. She quickly became a starter for the team and formed a partnership with Abby Wambach to help the U.S. finish runners-up at the 2011 World Cup before winning the 2012 Olympic gold medal.
Thank you🫶 pic.twitter.com/8BkofVOh3s
— Alex Morgan (@alexmorgan13) September 5, 2024
“I grew up on this team, it was so much more than soccer,” Morgan said in a statement from U.S. Soccer. “It was the friendships and the unwavering respect and support among each other, the relentless push for global investment in women’s sports, and the pivotal moments of success both on and off the field.
“I am so incredibly honored to have borrowed the crest for more than 15 years. I learned so much about myself in that time and so much of that is a credit to my teammates and our fans. I feel immense pride in where this team is headed, and I will forever be a fan of the USWNT.
“My desire for success may have always driven me, but what I got in return was more than I could have ever asked and hoped for.”
Morgan struggled with injuries ahead of the 2015 World Cup but eventually started for the USWNT as it grinded through the tournament before defeating Japan 5-2 in the final. She scored six goals at the 2019 World Cup (five of them in a 13-0 win over Thailand) to finish tied for most at the tournament.
She played in her fourth World Cup in 2023, starting all four games for the USWNT as it was eliminated in the round of 16 for the first time.
“Don’t think many people will ever understand the weight you carried with you being the face of this team and women’s football in general,” U.S. captain Lindsey Horan said in a tribute to Morgan on Instagram. “You made the game better for so many little ones looking up to you and what an incredible career on top of it.”
Morgan was one of the key figures in bringing to light the NWSL abuse scandal in 2021, which led to the dismissal or resignation of five of the leagues coaches and sparked an investigation that found systemic abuse and misconduct.
Morgan was instrumental in rallying fellow players to demand the NWSL adopt an anti-harassment policy and the reforms she advocated for improved working conditions across the league. She also served on the bargaining committee for the latest collective bargaining agreement with NWSL players announced last month.
“Alex’s legacy is one that will endure for generations, not only in the records, awards and trophies she has earned, but in the countless lives she has touched along the way,” NWSL Commissioner Jessica Berman said.
Information from The Associated Press contributed to this report.
