Seth Wenig/AP
On the heels of a thunderous victory at the Women’s World Cup on Sunday—followed by an equally roaring locker room celebration—the US Women’s National Team arrived in New York on Wednesday to celebrate their back-to-back win and fourth overall title with a ticker-tape parade to end all parades.
Bottles of Veuve overflowed. Beers were double-fisted. The entire team danced relentlessly and joyously uninhibited. There were chants of equal pay, mixed with one gratifying “pay us, bitch” moment from midfielder Allie Long. The event felt downright righteous and lived up to Megan Rapinoe’s recent defense of what some around the world have criticized for excessive celebrations on the field. “We work hard. We like to play hard,” Rapinoe had remarked amid the blowback from co-captain Alex Morgan’s tea-sipping goal celebration during the game against England.
The euphoria felt contagious—even from afar on a screen—and for a few brief moments, invited you to get delightfully inebriated and proud of what makes America actually great. Enjoy!
GONNA BE LIT 🔥 pic.twitter.com/AvN1ORI7uX
— U.S. Soccer WNT (@USWNT) July 10, 2019
Alex Morgan’s reaction to the equal pay chants as USSF President Carlos Cordeiro takes the podium. #USWNT pic.twitter.com/EEzxMZFHcC
— Meg Linehan (@itsmeglinehan) July 10, 2019
.@mPinoe holding a trophy and a bottle of champagne and yelling “I DESERVE THIS” is a mood, an inspiration, a battle cry for women nationwide pic.twitter.com/1r9YUDNBxD
— Emmy Bengtson (@EmmyA2) July 10, 2019
Never going to stop watching Allie Long eat a page of the USWNT lawsuit while Ashlyn Harris says "pay us bitch." pic.twitter.com/IWUqTIVjkC
— Megan Greenwell (@megreenwell) July 10, 2019
US women’s soccer star Megan Rapinoe just danced out on stage to “All I Do Is Win,” joining the rest of the team for a ceremony in New York City to celebrate their World Cup championship https://t.co/zzXBncsI44 pic.twitter.com/N5nbnhchDQ
— CNN (@CNN) July 10, 2019
My favorite OTP is Kelley O'Hara and her two beers #USWNT #USWNTParade pic.twitter.com/HbtZ44oQUF
— Nora Dominick (@noradominick) July 10, 2019
The moment when @mPinoe and @Ashlyn_Harris @alikrieger see @Kate_Kelly_Esq and her big gay sign. RIP, Kate. pic.twitter.com/6S87npPcz8
— Jamie L. Manson (@jamielmanson) July 10, 2019
As the event came to a close, Rapinoe delivered another moving message toasting the women of the team and their diversity. The remarks came on the heels of her interview with CNN’s Anderson Cooper the night before, during which she delivered a searing message for the president.
WATCH: Megan Rapinoe: "Just shoutout to the teammates … We're chillin', we got tea sippin', we got celebrations. We have pink hair and purple hair. We have tattoos and dreadlocks. We got white girls and black girls, and everything in between. Straight girls and gay girls." pic.twitter.com/WRpjQKKyye
— NBC News (@NBCNews) July 10, 2019
