Megan Rapinoe blames USMNT for lack of courage to follow women’s lead after World Cup humiliation
Megan Rapinoe believes the USMNT could have handled the off-field drama better ahead of their match against Belgium.
A crushing 4-1 loss to Belgium ended their run in the Round of 16, but it wasn’t the biggest story about the game.
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Rapinoe said the USMNT was not mentally prepared for President Trump’s intervention in the suspension of Folarin Balogun’s red card.
“I think the distraction definitely got to the team in some way,” Rapinoe said on her podcast: ‘A Touch More: The Beautiful Game’.
“Whether it was, you know, this red card situation, whether it was in a public speech with this president, all the chaos and turmoil that comes with that, the emotions on both sides of that.
“Whether you agree with it or not, there’s just so much to disagree with.”
Rapinoe was part of the US women’s team that won the 2019 World Cup.
In the eighth tournament of this tournament, America has successfully defended its title defeating the Netherlands 2-0 in the final.
They faced the same off-field performance when they won their fourth World Cup since its inception in 1991.
That competition began after the team filed its lawsuit against equality, and Rapinoe added that the players were “less prepared” for the attention when Trump began criticizing them.
“So, it doesn’t just do this [men’s] “The team doesn’t have a core of older players who are used to that, but none of these players talk about anything, anything, especially,” added Rapinoe.
“I think that in men’s football, just like everyone else, there are not many players who choose to use their field or, you know, increase their level of pressure and commitment.
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“I feel like it’s the first time that most of these players, if not all, even think about something that causes noise outside the field.
“It is impossible to say how much talk with the president, all of that, cannot be measured. You do not know. We will not know what would have happened to this team if that had not happened.”
Mauricio Pochettino’s side have faced questions ahead of the tournament, particularly regarding the selection of the squad.
They set the tone early with a record 4-1 win over Paraguay, but in the end, they lost to a very good Belgium team.
Their race for the 2026 World Cup has inspired the nation and bought new fans to the sport.
“I feel bad for them and I feel bad for us because it was a good game and it’s always good to have a host country and obviously as an American I want our guys to stay as long as possible,” continued Rapinoe.
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“But I think that in general they did not handle the pressure of the quarterfinal well.
“I don’t think they were doing well with all the circuses that were around their team.”
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