Megan Rapinoe urges Ronaldo, Messi and Ibrahimovic to join her in the fight against racism and sexism: 'Help Me'
US women's soccer star Megan Rapinoe has called upon the sport's top male players to help her fight racism and sexism.
Rapinoe specifically called on Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi, as well as Zlatan Ibrahimovic while doing an interview with France Football in order to help her fight and take on these social issues. As per an ESPN translation of the interview, Rapinoe shared, "I want to shout ‘Cristiano, Lionel, Zlatan, help me!"
"These big stars do not engage in anything when there are so many problems in men’s football. Do they fear losing everything? They believe that, but it is not true. Who will erase Messi or Ronaldo from world football history for a statement against racism or sexism?" she added.
Rapinoe had won the Ballon d’Or as the world's best female soccer player after she helped the United States secure a World Cup victory. She also won the Golden Boot and the Golden Ball awards during the tournament. This is the second time that the award has been given to a female athlete.
She shared with France Football that she believed her win was a recognition/acknowledgment of her success on the field as well as off the field. She shared, "On the one hand, I am a good player. On the other, my activity away from the pitch brings me support as people understand I am acting to find solutions to our society’s problems. The idea is to empower others to speak louder."
"I am lucky to have a bit of talent to lead these fights. I have no fear, so I say what I say. Traveling all over for conferences and meetings exhausts me, but you have to be on the front line to improve things in our world," she continued.
While a majority of the world's top soccer stars have remained silent when it comes to issues of racism, sexism, and homophobia, Rapinoe praised Raheem Sterling and Koulibaly in September for standing up against racism while accepting the award for FIFA best women's player.