Donald Trump hits back at Rapinoe: “Nice shot, Megan”

The USWNT are still reeling from their shock exit from the World Cup at the Round of 16 stage. The defending champions and odds-on favourites failed to make it to the quarter finals for the first time in its golden history. One of the first to react to the Americans’ defeat to Sweden was former US president, Donald Trump. Trump remembered one USWNT player in particular - Megan Rapinoe.

The war between Trump and the veteran forward has been public for a number of years. “The ‘shocking and totally unexpected’ loss by the US Women’s Soccer team to Sweden is fully emblematic of what is happening to our once great nation under crooked Joe Biden. Many of our players were openly hostile to America. No other country behaved in such a manner, or even close,” he wrote.

But Trump went further, singling out Rapinoe - one of the players who missed a decisive penalty in the shootout against Sweden. “Nice shot, Megan! The USA is going to hell!” he declared.

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Long-standing conflict

The feud between Rapinoe and Trump goes back a long way, even before he was elected. It was in 2019, during the World Cup in France, when war was openly declared. In the Round of 16 against Spain, Rapinoe once again refused to sing the anthem in protest and neither did she put her hand to her heart while it was playing.

After the game against La Roja, the US media, eager to erase the familiar name of Spain as soon as possible, asked the captain if she was excited to think about being received at the White House if the United States win the World Cup. “I’m not going to the fucking White House,” he retorted. No sooner said than done. The United States were crowned world champions on French soil and Rapinoe and her team mates kept their word and turned down an invitation to celebrate with the president.