INSIDER
Rapinoe, Press among players opting out of NWSL tournament
Read full article: Rapinoe, Press among players opting out of NWSL tournamentU.S. national team players Megan Rapinoe, Tobin Heath and Christen Press have opted out of the National Women's Soccer League tournament kicking off this weekend in Utah. Heath and Press, who played with Rapinoe on the champion World Cup team last summer in France, cited concerns about the coronavirus for their decisions not to play. Among the national team players taking part in the tournament are Chicago's Julie Ertz, U.S. Soccer's Player of the Year, and teammate Alyssa Naeher, North Carolina's Crystal Dunn and Portland's Becky Sauerbrunn. The league was rocked by the announcement Monday that the Orlando Pride were dropping out of the tournament after six players and four staff members tested positive for COVID-19. Like all NWSL players, she was given the option to participate.
Rapinoe stands by comments about not visiting White House
Read full article: Rapinoe stands by comments about not visiting White HouseThe US Women's National Team forward, speaking ahead of Friday's blockbuster Women's World Cup quarterfinal match against host nation France, reiterated Thursday that she would not visit the White House. On Tuesday, Eight by Eight, a soccer magazine, released video of Rapinoe telling a reporter in January, "I'm not going to the f*****g White House" if the US wins the Women's World Cup. "I stand by the comments that I made about not wanting to go to the White House -- with the exception of the expletive," Rapinoe said in Paris on Thursday. Alex Morgan, Ali Krieger opt out of White House visitIn a series of tweets Wednesday, President Donald Trump claimed that sports teams "love coming to the White House" and attacked Rapinoe, saying she "should WIN first before she talks!" In a story released in May by Time Magazine, Alex Morgan also said she would not visit the White House.