Hope Solo claims Megan Rapinoe has almost bullied players into kneeling

Hope Solo made some headlines with comments about Megan Rapinoe’s activism within the U.S. Women’s National Soccer Team.

The U.S. Women’s National Soccer Team had a disappointing showing at the Summer Olympics in Tokyo. It was favored to take home the gold but settled for the bronze medal.

Solo was a guest on “All of US: The U.S. Women’s Soccer Show,” and talked about the team’s disappointing Olympics. Solo, who won Olympic gold medals for the national team in 2008 and 2012, says that she felt this team was one of the most talented US teams we will ever see. She said there was a ton of shock and low morale within the team related to their surprising Olympic struggles, though the morale turned after they won the bronze medal game.

During her appearance on the show, Solo was asked about President Donald Trump’s criticism of the U.S. women’s team. The former president accused the team’s activism, led by Rapinoe, of interfering with their focus.

“I think the rhetoric surrounding this team has been both divisive and inclusive. I guess it’s kind of where we are in politics in this day and age,” Solo began.

She then talked about how divisive kneeling can be and how pushy Rapinoe was allegedly toward her teammates.

“I think the kneeling thing can be very divisive. I do appreciate the fact that there is no national anthem right before the game to really remove that decision for athletes. Because that’s tough. I’ve seen Megan Rapinoe almost bully players into kneeling because she really wants to stand up for something in her particular way,” Solo said on the show.

“But it’s our right as Americans to do it in whatever way we’re comfortable with. And I think that’s really hard being on the main stage right now with so many political issues for athletes. There’s a lot of pressure. At the end of the day, our number one focus should and has always been to win first.”

Solo seemed to diplomatically imply that the team would be better off focusing on winning first before fighting and worrying about divisive political actions and statements. She also empathized with the athletes over the situation, saying that they feel a lot of external pressure to make political statements.

Solo, 40, last played for the national team in 2016, which was actually prior to when Rapinoe began kneeling. So any instances of Rapinoe pushing her teammates to kneel would not have come while they were teammates. But Solo says she is still in contact with players from the team, so it’s quite possible she would have intimate information about the happenings on the squad.

Just to give you an idea about how divisive the situation is, Carli Lloyd was singled out for being the lone player not to kneel before the bronze medal game at the Olympics.