If it wasn’t already crystal clear just how little time Megan Rapinoe spends thinking about the president and his disdain for her, allow her to spell it out for you ― while looking extremely badass ― on the cover of Marie Claire’s October issue.
The World Cup champion is one of four cover stars picked to celebrate the magazine’s 25th anniversary. As has become the norm, the magazine asked Rapinoe about President Donald Trump, her now-famous quote about refusing to visit the White House and Trump’s extremely un-presidential response, which came while the team was in France advancing in the tournament.
And she didn’t mince words.
“I certainly understand the gravity of a Trump tweet, how he uses social media to rile up his base, to attack people, to attack women in particular,” she said. “But it just seems so ridiculous, to be frank. It was unbelievable that it was happening, but it rallied the team even more.”
So, do we have Trump partially to thank for what would become the U.S. Women’s Soccer Teams’ fourth World Cup win? No, of course not ― but we’re all for channeling negative energy into positive motivation, especially when it means another victory for the nation’s favorite sporting team.
In the interview, Rapinoe also discusses her relationship with WNBA star Sue Bird, who she refers to as the “Benjamin Button of sports,” her ongoing fight for equal pay and the contradictory way people treated her both before ― and after ― her big win.
“Even when they do call male athletes arrogant, it’s almost in a positive way,” she said. “But when it comes from a woman, they’re like, ‘How dare she? How dare she know she’s one of the best players in the world? How dare she take a moment to let 55,000 fans absolutely adore her?’ You know? We don’t allow women the space to be that way.”
Marie Claire’s fourth-anniversary issues hit newsstands Sept. 19.
