Megan Rapinoe is in top form at 36 years old and doesn’t look to be slowing down anytime soon. Just this summer, the soccer legend scored two goals against Australia to help the national team win bronze at the Tokyo Olympics.

The USWNT star reveals that her remarkable career longevity is thanks in large part to her fiancée Sue Bird.

Rapinoe stopped by the Snacks podcast to talk with teammates Lynn Williams and Sam Mewis about the diet and exercise changes she made at age 30 when Bird walked into her life.

“I feel like that’s kind of just about the time where your body just kind of changes anyways,” says Rapinoe about the end of her 20s, when she was coming off her third ACL tear.

“You go the first part of your career, and you can kind of just do what you’re doing… but then there comes this time where you need to change something or you just get old really fast.”

That’s when future WNBA Hall of Famer Sue Bird entered the picture.

“I got really lucky because I met Sue, and Sue is five years older than me, and she kind of went through this period.”

As part of her own return from injury, Bird had implemented a new diet and exercise regime.

“Of course, I was smitten, in love, and I was like, ‘I’ll just pretty much do whatever Sue’s doing,'” remembers Rapinoe.

At the time, Rapinoe was also getting considerably less playing time with the national team after kneeling in support of Colin Kaepernick.

“I was a little on the outs with Jill [Ellis] and the National Team because of the whole kneeling situation. They didn’t really take well to that.”

Because she wasn’t being invited into national team camp, Rapinoe had a lot more time to experiment with her diet and exercise.

“I was just like working out and eating the way Sue did,” says Rapinoe, “It wasn’t like I drastically changed everything, but it was more what I was eating and when.”

The diet switch-up included “Sue’s famous breakfast sandwich,” which consists of an english muffin, over hard eggs, onions, and sauteed spinach. It also meant cutting out a lot of carbs, especially earlier in the day.

Even with the strict diet in place, Rapinoe says she still finds time for charcuterie boards, wine, pizza, and fried chicken every now and again, saying “You can’t drive yourself nuts” if you get too obsessed with your diet.

Listen to the full conversation with Rapinoe for more on her historic career and her life with Bird here.

Soccer legend Abby Wambach is taking ownership for failing “to speak out publicly or defy the status quo” when she was a player.

“Over the years, I played on more than one team owned or coached by men who I witnessed be emotionally and verbally abusive and dehumanizing,” she wrote in a Twitter post. “I am so deeply sorry to all the players who have been hurt inside the sport we all love.”

Multiple players have come forward in recent weeks and months, detailing allegations of abuse by coaches within the NWSL.

Most recently, Sinead Farrelly and Mana Shim came forward to detail allegations of abuse by former North Carolina Courage Coach Paul Riley.

“I wish that, during my playing days, I’d had the courage of Sinead, Kaiya and Mana — to speak out publicly and demand change,” she said. “I stand with them now, and along with them I call for the transparency, accountability, and justice that our sport has long needed.”

In the past, Wambach has been criticized for supporting former magicJack owner Dan Borislow, who was accused of mistreating his players. Wambach both played and coached for Borislow.

After the Women’s Professional Soccer league (the NWSL’s predecessor) voted to terminate the magicJack franchise over its owner’s behavior, the subsequent legal battle led the WPS to first cancel the 2012 season before ultimately folding later that year. The NWSL was founded in 2013 as its replacement.

The North Carolina Courage knew about the Portland Thorns’ investigation into Paul Riley when they hired him, owner Steve Malik said in a letter released Wednesday.

Last Thursday, the Courage fired Riley after The Athletic released a bombshell report detailing allegations of emotional abuse and sexual coercion.

“Following this past week’s appalling revelations, we as a club have taken the past few days to focus internally on supporting our players and staff as we move forward as a unified group,” Malik wrote. “As we continue to process difficult emotions, let me begin by saying that I am deeply sorry for our part in the failure to create an environment where players feel safe and comfortable coming forward.”

According to Malik, the club immediately fired Riley upon learning of the allegations.

“There is no place for that behavior and abuse in our sport and society,” he continued.

Over the past week, players and staff have been provided mental health resources, including a trauma psychologist.

The letter states that ownership did “due diligence” when they acquired the Western New York Flash in 2017 and brought the club to North Carolina. Riley had been fired by the Thorns in 2015 and was hired by the Flash in 2016.

At the time, the Thorns said they chose not to renew Riley’s contract. Over the past week, however, the club has admitted that it terminated Riley due to an internal investigation into allegations of misconduct toward former player Mana Shim.

“We were made aware of an investigation into Mr. Riley’s behavior in 2015 and were subsequently assured that he was in good standing,” Malik said in his letter. “During his employment with the Courage, we had no knowledge of allegations of sexual harassment or coercion.”

The NWSL has been rocked over the past week in the wake of The Athletic’s reporting. The NWSL, FIFA and US Soccer have all opened up investigations into the league while commissioner Lisa Baird resigned last Friday.

Games are set to resume Wednesday, with the Courage taking on Racing Louisville at 7:30 p.m. ET.

Atlanta Dream guard Courtney Williams has apologized for her role in an incident captured on camera that appears to show Dream players fighting outside of a food truck.

“I want to sincerely apologize for the video posted yesterday,” Williams wrote on Twitter on Monday, the day after the video began to circulate on social media. “I would never want to represent myself or the organization in a negative way. I’m learning everyday so I ask for grace as I’m growing. Again I apologize to all attached, and I will be better moving forward.”

In the video, which lasts almost two minutes, Williams can be seen throwing punches alongside teammates Crystal Bradford and Kalani Brown.

According to Insider, the skirmish took place outside of a day club in the early days of the season and the team handled the situation internally. The altercation reportedly began when someone made a comment about Williams’ girlfriend, prompting the guard to respond with her teammates serving as backup.

Team leadership was aware of the situation before the video surfaced, Inside reported. Williams, who made her first All-Star Game as Atlanta’s only representative, led the team with 16.5 points, 6.8 rebounds and four assists per game while starting each of their 32 regular season games.

“The behavior in the video is unacceptable and does not align with our values as an organization,” the Dream said in a statement to Insider. “We are taking this matter very seriously and working with the league to gather more information and determine next steps.”

NWSL and USWNT star Lynn Williams is speaking out about the allegations against former North Carolina Courage coach Paul Riley. Riley, who has been accused of sexually coercing and emotionally abusing multiple NWSL players, was fired by North Carolina on Thursday.

“I fully support Mana Shim and Sinead Farrelly, and I admire the bravery it took for them to come forward,” Williams wrote. “I am sickened by the details outlined in the article, and saddened to know there may be others.”

Like teammate Sam Mewis, Williams has played under Riley since 2016 when he was named head coach of the Western New York Flash. Since then, Williams has established herself as a USWNT regular and was named to the 2020 Tokyo Olympic team roster.

Mewis also spoke out about the allegations on Thursday, saying, “I support Sinead and Mana. I am horrified to read the details of what happened to them. The league needs to do whatever is necessary to make them (and other victims, like Kaiya) feel heard, believed, and protected.”

During the 2019-2020 season, Williams was sent to the Western Sydney Wanderers on loan before returning to the Courage. Through 12 matches this season, Williams has six goals, which is tied for fifth in the league. Williams won the NWSL MVP and Golden Boot awards in 2016.

She joins a long list of players condemning the allegations against Riley.

NWSL Commissioner Lisa Baird said in a statement on Friday that she takes “full responsibility” for the role she has played in the league’s tumultuous season.

“This week, and much of this season, has been incredibly traumatic for our players and staff, and I take full responsibility for the role I have played,” NWSL commissioner Lisa Baird said in the statement. “I am so sorry for the pain so many are feeling.”

Baird has been the subject of scrutiny in the past 24 hours after allegations of sexual coercion and emotional abuse surfaced against former-North Carolina Courage coach Paul Riley. In a statement yesterday, Baird said she was “shocked and disgusted” by the allegations.

However, USWNT star Alex Morgan posted screenshots of emails between Baird and one of the victims, Sinead Farrelly, showing that Baird had known about at least some of the allegations earlier this year.

“The league was informed of these allegations multiple times and refused multiple times to investigate the allegations,” Morgan Tweeted. “The league must accept responsibility for a process that failed to protect its own players from this abuse.”

In response to Farrelly’s initial email, Baird said that the initial complaint was “investigated to conclusion” before wishing Farrelly “the best.”

The NWSL announced on Friday that it will not be playing the weekend’s games.

Following Thursday’s league wide reckoning over the allegations of sexual coercion and emotional abuse against former North Carolina Courage coach Paul Riley, the NWSL will not play any games this weekend, commissioner Lisa Baird announced.

It is unclear whether or not the games have been canceled or postponed with intention to reschedule.

“This week, and much of this season, has been incredibly traumatic for our players and staff, and I take full responsibility for the role I have played,” NWSL commissioner Lisa Baird said in the statement. “I am so sorry for the pain so many are feeling. Recognizing that trauma, we have decided not to take the field this weekend to give everyone some space to reflect.

“Business as usual isn’t our concern right now. Our entire league has a great deal of healing to do, and our players deserve so much better. We have made this decision in collaboration with our players association and this pause will be the first step as we collectively work to transform the culture of this league, something that is long overdue.”

The Orlando Pride, who were originally slated to play the Chicago Red Stars on Saturday, reportedly went to the airport but did not board their flight. Now, the team is not traveling to Chicago.

Following a league-wide reckoning yesterday over sexual coercion and emotional abuse allegations against former North Carolina Courage coach Paul Riley, more complaints are coming to light — this time about former OL Reign head coach Farid Benstiti.

According to Molly Hensley-Clancy in The Washington Post, Benstiti was also the subject “of a formal complaint of verbal abuse made by a player.” Allegedly, the French coach made inappropriate comments regarding players’ fitness and nutrition.

Benstiti resigned from his position in July. At the time, OL Reign’s CEO Bill Predmore thanked the coach for his “contributions” before saying that the club “wished him the best in all his future endeavors.”

According to the Post, a statement given to the paper by Predmore said he had requested the resignation after being told of the inappropriate comments by the player. The team investigated the allegation and found out about the formal complaint to the NWSL only after requesting Benstiti’s resignation.

Predmore said the team wasn’t aware of “any specific issues or concerns” upon Benstiti’s hiring. Previously, however, USWNT player Lindsey Horan had publicly spoken out about her experiences of being shamed for her weight by Benstiti when she played for him at Paris Saint-Germain.

Once the team learned of Horan’s allegations, Predmore told the Post, the team instituted a “zero-tolerance” policy with the coach.

Benstiti is the fourth coach this year to depart an NWSL club following allegations of improprieties with players.

Laura Harvey was welcomed back to OL Reign in Benstiti’s place after managing the club from 2013 to 2017.

In a Friday call with reporters, Predmore took full responsibility for the hiring of Benstiti.

“The decision to hire Farid was mine and I accept responsibility for that and I think in hindsight I got it wrong,” he said. “How people wish to hold me accountable, I don’t think it’s for me to decide.”

Additionally, Predmore claimed some responsibility for the allegations against Paul Riley, saying that as an owner in the league he is “responsible for the conduct of the league.”

“Ultimately what we allowed to happen, it wasn’t okay,” he said. “And it needed to be better, immediately, so I think that’s it. We need to do better.”

U.S. Soccer has suspended Paul Riley’s coaching license following allegations of sexual coercion and emotional abuse.

Riley had previously earned the highest coaching license available through U.S. Soccer, the Pro Level license.

In a statement, the USSF wrote that they are “deeply disturbed” by the allegations.

“The abusive behavior described by the courageous athletes who have come forward is repulsive, unacceptable and has zero place in soccer or society,” they continued, adding that all the players have “our unequivocal support.”

The suspension is effective immediately. On Thursday, Riley was fired by the North Carolina Courage in response to the allegations.

Another day, another record broken by WNBA legend Diana Taurasi.

Multiple records, actually.

The Phoenix Mercury point guard registered two playoff career-highs – 37 points and eight 3-pointers – to lead the Mercury to a 117-91 win over the Las Vegas Aces in Game 2 of the semifinals on Thursday.

Her 17 points in the opening 20 minutes, combined with Brittney Griner’s 18, helped the Mercury secure the WNBA postseason record for first-half points with 68. They also matched the league’s playoff best for first-quarter points with 37.

Let’s not forget Taurasi is still doing it all on an injured left ankle.

“Hats off to Diana, to be quite honest,” Phoenix coach Sandy Brondello said after the game. “To have 37 points and the way that she shot the ball; a player that’s been out for three weeks. She hasn’t practiced with us at all. Still has pain, doesn’t even do a shootaround. She just plays. I mean that says a lot about her as a player.

“I’ve seen many great games from Diana, but none as big as this one in a situation where she hasn’t been able to train and not 100 percent, so credit to her.”

Brondello isn’t concerned about the status of Taurasi’s injury as they head into Game 3 on Sunday.

“She’s not 100 percent, but she hasn’t gotten worse,” the coach said nonchalantly, later adding, “She’s mentally tough.”

Taurasi played 27 minutes on Thursday, going 76 percent from the field and 72 percent from the 3-point line. Her efforts helped Phoenix, as a team, shoot 77 percent from the field and 70 percent from 3 by the end of the first half.

It wasn’t just Taurasi’s shooting that was on display Thursday night. With six rebounds, the 39-year-old passed Lindsay Whalen’s 278 boards to rank 15th on the WNBA’s all-time playoff rebounds list.

“When you have big games like this, you just enjoy them, and you feel a lot better when you come out with the win,” said Taurasi, who gave credit to teammates Griner and Skylar Diggins-Smith for their contributions.

Griner contributed 25 points on 9-for-12 shooting and seven rebounds Thursday, while Diggins-Smith had 17 points.

Aces coach Bill Laimbeer emphasized that the upcoming semifinal games are only going to get harder for Las Vegas, especially when going up against Taurasi and Griner.

“When Taurasi’s hot like that, they’re very, very difficult,” Laimbeer said following Game 2.

The former UConn Husky played her first game in nearly three weeks during the second round of playoffs when she helped Phoenix to an 85-80 win over the Seattle Storm in a single-elimination game. She followed that up with 20 points in the Mercury’s first game against the Aces on Tuesday.

Phoenix and Las Vegas meet for Game 3 on Sunday at 3 p.m. ET, looking to break their 1-1 series tie.