‘I did everything I wanted’: Alex Morgan ends career on emotional night in San Diego
Fighting back tears, Alex Morgan waved to the crowd and walked off the court for the final time on Sunday, capping off her remarkable career.
The two-time Women’s World Cup winner announced on Thursday that she is pregnant with her second child and will retire from football at the age of 35.
She started her final game for the San Diego Wave and wore the captain’s armband, playing the first 13 minutes, a nod to her club and country number, against the North Carolina Courage before being substituted to applause at Snapdragon Stadium in San Diego.
“I’ve done everything I ever wanted to do and more. With this decision, I feel so peaceful because I’m ready to start my family and I’m ready to hang up my boots and let the next generation blossom and just enjoy the spotlight,” she said afterward. “It’s a good feeling.”
It was her 63rd appearance for the Wave, commemorated by a No. 63 jersey being given to Morgan in a pre-match ceremony. Overall, it was her 150th appearance in the National Women’s Soccer League.
Before the game, the video scoreboard showed clips from Morgan’s farewell video, along with highlights from her career. Her four-year-old daughter, Charlie, joined her on the court. She had more than 95 family members and friends at the game.
The Wave’s starters posed for a photo imitating Morgan’s famous ‘tea sipping’ celebration, a tribute to her celebration of her decisive goal to beat England in the semi-finals of the 2019 World Cup in France.
Morgan’s U.S. national team career was packed with accomplishments, including World Cup titles in 2015 and 2019 and an Olympic gold medal in 2012. At club level, Morgan played for the NWSL champion Portland Thorns in the league’s inaugural year and helped the Wave win the Shield, for the league’s best regular season record, in 2023. Morgan has played in 224 games for the U.S., scoring 123 goals (fifth on the career list) and adding 53 assists (ninth). She was named U.S. Soccer Player of the Year in 2012 and 2018.
When she was substituted, she fought back tears as she took off her boots in midfield. During the substitution, a tifo was displayed in the supporters’ section that read: “For country, club, community.”
Despite the near-100F heat, a crowd of 26,516 fans packed Snapdragon for Morgan’s farewell game. Among them was San Diego Padres pitcher Joe Musgrove, who went to the game right after starting against the San Francisco Giants.
“Twelve thousand tickets were sold in one day when she announced this was going to be her last game,” NWSL Commissioner Jessica Berman said. “That’s the power of Alex Morgan.”
The North Carolina Courage went on to win the match 4-1, with Morgan’s penalty shot being saved by Courage keeper Casey Murphy.
But the whole evening was about celebrating a career.
Wave coach Landon Donovan said his daughter asked him to help her make a board for Morgan’s final competition.
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“That stuff is immeasurable, because she made my daughter, who never watched sports before, fall in love with sports, and women’s sports,” Donovan said. “That’s what Alex meant to the game and to the sport. And it’s sad to see her go. I don’t think there will ever be anyone else like her, honestly.”
Wave fan Amber Brunner attended the game with her family and said, “My daughters fell in love with soccer because of her.”
Off the field, Morgan has championed women’s soccer as she fights for equal pay with the men’s national team. The U.S. women filed a lawsuit in 2019 that led to a historic agreement in 2022 that paid the men and women equally. She also paved the way for reform in the NWSL, calling for an anti-harassment policy after a coaching misconduct scandal rocked the league in 2021.
A young fan at the game held up a sign that read: “Thank you Alex for all your hard work for women’s sport.”
Morgan said she looks forward to cheering on both the Wave and the U.S. national team and continuing to advocate for the players.
“The next Alex Morgan is not only going to be in the stands, because I’m sure there are some of those people, but they’re going to be on that field every weekend,” she said. “It’s just incredible what we’ve been able to do here in the U.S. to really give soccer the best opportunity for people to buy into it as much as we do.”