Matildas star Sam Kerr and her fiancée Kristie Mewis have touched down in Perth after a difficult year for the favourite football couple.
The visit to Kerr’s hometown comes just days after it was announced that the 33-year-old Mewis had been cut from the U.S. team for the Paris Olympics, leaving fans in shock.
It also marks the couple’s first visit to Australia since Kerr, 30, was accused of racially abusing a police officer in southwest London on January 30, 2023.
Kerr, wearing a black T-shirt and green shorts, smiled as she wheeled several large suitcases from the airport terminal to a waiting SUV.
The visit Down Under follows a difficult year for Kerr and Mewis, with Mewis wearing black sunglasses as she helped her fiancé with the bags.
The 33-year-old has scored seven goals in 53 games for the United States since first being selected in 2013. However, he suffered an ankle injury in April and struggled to find the net for the San Diego Waves.
Mewis, who also plays for West Ham in the English Women’s Super League, will now watch the Games with Kerr, but away from the field. The Matildas superstar will not attend the Games for Australia due to a serious knee injury.
The Matildas captain was sidelined after suffering a serious knee injury in January, which prevented her from playing as Chelsea won their fifth consecutive Women’s Super League title.
Sam Kerr and her fiancée Kristie Mewis landed in Perth on Friday afternoon
The visit to Down Under follows a difficult year for the favorite football couple
That marked a shocking start to 2024 for the 30-year-old, who was accused of racially harassing a police officer in a bombshell announcement in March.
She pleaded not guilty, but suffered a further setback when her defense’s attempts to have the charges dismissed failed, resulting in her appearing in court for four days in February of the following year.
Mewis was sidelined by an injury she sustained in February while playing for West Ham and was unsure if she was available to play for the US in the Olympics when she was interviewed in March.
The couple recently got away from it all on a luxury vacation to Mexico’s Baja coast, where they dressed to the nines for a meal at their five-star hotel, hung out in their room, rode ponies and even watched a performance by an artist who dances with fire while twirling her hair.
Earlier this week, it was announced that Mewis had been cut from the U.S. Olympic team
The couple appeared to be in good spirits as they loaded their suitcases into the back of an SUV
The US selection committee and manager Emma Hayes, who until recently coached Kerr at Chelsea, made another highly controversial decision when they left USWNT legend Alex Morgan out of the 18-player Paris squad.
She has been a mainstay of the side since 2010, scoring 123 goals in her 224 games for the team, making her the top scorer available for selection.
“I am disappointed that I will not have the opportunity to represent our country on the Olympic stage. This will always be a tournament close to my heart and I am immensely proud every time I wear the badge,” Morgan wrote after receiving the news.
“In less than a month, I look forward to supporting this team and cheering them on, along with the rest of the country.”
Kristie Mewis (pictured with fiancé Sam Kerr) has been cut from the USWNT roster to play at the Paris Olympics
The 33-year-old (pictured playing for her country) suffered an ankle injury in April
Mewis has scored seven goals in 53 appearances for her country since she was first selected in 2013
The USWNT has come under fire after Korbin Albert was controversially selected for the 2024 Olympics in Paris – despite sharing anti-LGBTQ+ messages on social media.
The midfielder has been booed at national team games of late, but she was one of 18 players named to the team by coach Emma Hayes this week.
The selection raised eyebrows, given the negative reactions to Albert’s social media activities from her own teammates.
Albert previously posted a video of a Christian prayer room preaching against homosexuality and transsexuality.
In another TikTok post — which has since been deleted — Albert showed her family saying “their pronouns are US,” during the Fourth of July weekend.