Kristie Mewis might be dating the opposition, but that doesn’t mean she is letting out state secrets.
The U.S. women’s national team midfielder spoke with Just Women’s Sports about how she is navigating the 2023 World Cup, including in her relationship with Australia star Sam Kerr.
While Kerr and Mewis sit on opposite sides of the bracket at the tournament in Australia and New Zealand, the couple faced off against one another in the bronze-medal match at the 2021 Olympics in Tokyo.
“Do you remember at the Olympics when I went up to you and I was like, ‘Kristie, I know it goes without saying but: You can’t talk to Sam about anything we’re talking about. You know that, right?” USWNT teammate Kelley O’Hara asked Mewis.
“I couldn’t even believe you would ask me that,” Mewis said, in shock that a few of her teammates even felt that they had to ask. “I would literally never. … When she asked me that, I was horrified. Literally horrified.”
The 32-year-old then shared that she and Kerr don’t get into the “nitty-gritty” of their shared sport when they are together. She pointed to an international friendly as an example of how they set their relationship aside when they are on the pitch.
“There is this one moment — it wasn’t in the Olympics, but we always talk about this because I had subbed on and she was on and there was a 50/50 ball in front of us,” Mewis said. “It was like the last probably like 15 minutes of the game. And we both went in so hard. I don’t even know where the ball went. … It was a 50/50 ball, we rammed into each other.
“I think we would just kill each other to win. But it doesn’t change anything with us. Like, I’m obsessed with her. And I love her so much. And she’s the best. But I think when it comes to soccer and national teams, it’s just like the relationship doesn’t exist.”
Heading into the World Cup year Kerr and Mewis were prepared their support for each other with their focus on the tournament, as they shared with soccer lifestyle magazine Gaffer in January. And when Mewis found out in June she had made the USWNT roster, Kerr was her first call.
Kerr has extra pressure as the face of the home team, even as she deals with an injury that has sidelined her for the first two games of the group stage. She became the country’s all-time leader in international goals in 2022, surpassing Tim Cahill’s previous record (49).
Still, as the couple said in January, they are proud to share their journey.
“I think just being out and being two girls in love, I think if we can change one or two people’s lives and the way that they feel about each other and how comfortable they feel, then that means a lot to me,” Mewis said.
