Photo: Daniel Nickson / CC BY 3.0 (source: Wikimedia Commons)
My Take
Megan Rapinoe is one of those athletes who became bigger than her sport without ever losing the edge that made her great on it. That 2019 World Cup run, the pink hair, the iconic arms-out celebration, the cold-blooded penalties, was pure theater backed by elite quality. What stands out to me is that she used every bit of that platform, pushing hard on equal pay and LGBTQ rights when it would have been safer to stay quiet. You can disagree with her politics, but the courage and the trophy cabinet are undeniable. She redefined what a women's soccer icon could be off the pitch.
Overview
Megan Rapinoe (born July 5, 1985, in Redding, California) is an American former professional soccer player and activist. A winger for the United States women's national team, she won two FIFA Women's World Cups (2015, 2019) and an Olympic gold medal, earning the Golden Boot and Golden Ball at the 2019 World Cup along with the Ballon d'Or Feminin and FIFA Best award. She is also a prominent advocate for LGBTQ rights and equal pay, and was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2022.
1. Profile
- Name (English)
- Megan Rapinoe
- Name (Japanese)
- ミーガン・ラピーノー
- Reading
- みーがん・らぴーのー
- Born
- July 5, 1985 (age 40)
- Zodiac / Chinese zodiac
- Cancer / Ox
- Origin
- Redding, California, USA
- Blood type
- Private
- Height
- 170cm
- Agency
- Private
- Occupation
- Soccer player / Entrepreneur / Actor
2. Background
- Elementary school
- Private
- Junior high
- Private
- High school
- Private
- University
- University of Portland
Awards & achievements
- 2019 BBC 100 Women
- 2019 Ballon d'Or Feminin
- 2019 FIFA Best Women's Player
- 2019 Sports Personality of the Year
- 2022 Time 100
- 2022 Presidential Medal of Freedom
3. Relationships
- Spouse
- Private
- Children
- Private
- Parents
- Private
- Siblings
- Private
4. Personality
Motto
Private
6. Links
Soccer player — see all → · Entrepreneur — see all → · More people from USA →
7. About this entry
Tags
- Last updated
- 2026-06-02
Facts are limited to publicly available information up to 2024; non-public items are marked "Private / Unknown". English text is machine-assisted (facts translated by Sonnet, "My Take" written by Opus 4.8). The Japanese page is the source of record.