Women’s soccer star Megan Rapinoe endorsed Elizabeth Warren for president on Friday, calling her ‘bold’ and ‘real.’
Warren supported Rapinoe and her team mates in their battle to get equal pay for the world champion soccer squad.
Rapinoe, who was just named Sports Illustrated Sportswoman of the year, famously feuded with President Donald Trump in the run up to the FIFA Women’s World Cup.
She gave her blessing to Warren on Friday and told the senator in a video posted to her Instagram page that she appreciated her progressive stance on this issues.
Women’s soccer star Megan Rapinoe endorsed Elizabeth Warren for president
Elizabeth Warren supported the women’s soccer team battle for equal pay
Rapinoe, who is co-captain of the women’s national team, said she’s been following what Warren’s campaign is doing, calling it ‘big and bold.’
‘I just don’t think we can get to a better place by walking this moderate line so I appreciate you being out front and being big and bold,’ she said. ‘I would love to be endorse you and be on your team and help in anyway I can. So consider me Team Warren.’
‘I think we got this Megan,’ Warren responded.
The two minute video showed the two women chatting on their phone. Warren was in a car and Rapinoe appeared to be in a waiting room of an airport or train station.
Rapinoe called the senator ‘Elizabeth’ and then said: ‘I can’t believe I called you by your first name. That’s so inappropriate.’
‘No it’s not inappropriate. It’s exactly right. And I just want to call and say thank you. We need you in this battle,’ Warren replied.
‘Well we have a little saying on the National Team that we like to say, I don’t know if you can cuss on here, but it’s LFG. So, let’s do this,’ Rapinoe told her.
‘Alright Megan. You and me. LFG,’ Warren said laughing.
Rapinoe praised Warren in her Instagram post, writing: ‘I truly believe the best things in life are a result of being bold and being real. This extends to every part of my life and nothing feels more relevant and real than this election. I’m proud to endorse @elizabethwarren today, for being bold, for being real, for listening to ALL of us, and for being prepared to navigate the unique challenges we face today as a country.’
And Warren called the soccer star a ‘champion of justice on and off the field.’
‘Megan is a champion of justice on and off the field and a role model for women and girls everywhere. I am honored to have her endorsement, and look forward to fighting alongside her for big, structural change,’ she said in a statement.
In June, Warren offered her support for the U.S. women’s national soccer team in their legal battle for equal pay, endorsing their efforts on the same day they shattered records in a 13-0 victory over Thailand at the FIFA Women’s World Cup.
Rapinoe told Warren she appreciated her fighting for a more progressive stand on issues
Rapinoe was recently named Sports Illustrated Sportswoman of the Year
‘The @USWNT is #1 in the world & contributes higher revenues for @USSoccer than the men’s team, but they’re still paid a fraction of what the men earn,’ Warren wrote on Twitter. ‘Women deserve equal pay for equal (or better!) work in offices, factories, AND on the soccer field.’
Last month, a judge in the team’s gender discrimination lawsuit granted them class status, an important victory in their legal battle.
The women were seeking class action status in their fight, so the ruling would apply to any woman who had appeared in a national team camp or game.
That ruling gave no indication of how a final verdict will go. A trial date is set for May 2020.
It’s not Rapinoe’s first foray into national politics.
She and Trump got into a battle over a potential White House visit as the women’s team played in France.
Rapinoe told an interviewer in June she would not be making a visit to the White House if her team earned its second consecutive World Cup win.
Trump and Rapinoe feuded during the women’s world cup championship this summer
Rapinoe poses during the World Cup game after scoring a goal following her feud with President Trump
‘I’m not going to the f**king White House,’ Rapinoe responded when asked if she would accept an invitation. The moment, caught on camera, went viral.
It drew an angry response from the president, who said she should ‘never disrespect our country’ and demanded that ‘Megan should win first before she talks’.
Rapinoe did win. The next day she scored a pair of goals against France and marked them with by posing with her arms up and chin outstretched in what was seen as a dig at the president.
She also scored the opening goal in the final game against the Netherlands and took home the player of the tournament award and the prize for top goalscorer.
Trump was gracious after the final, congratulating the team for winning the World Cup and saying: ‘America is proud of you all’.
But the team has never visited the White House in the wake of their victory.
Rapinoe also went viral in her handling of the National Anthem, in 2016 becoming the first female to kneel in protest.
She has not participated in the National Anthem for years, usually standing with her hands by her side instead of over her heart.