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Megan Rapinoe continues to be a major talking point after the USWNT bowed out of the 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup in Australia and New Zealand.
The United States women's national soccer team crashed out of the Women's World Cup after losing 5-4 on penalties to Sweden in the Round of 16 on Sunday (August 6). The defeat marked the teams' worst run in the competition, finishing outside the top three for the first time.
The game went to penalties after the USWNT and Sweden played out a goalless 120 minutes. Sweden emerged victorious after Megan Rapinoe, Sophia Smith and Kelley O'Hara missed their respective spot-kicks for the two-time defending champions.
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Megan Rapinoe, in particular, has been the subject of severe criticism after failing to convert her penalty. News website The Dunning-Kruger Times has notably published an article saying that the USWNT superstar has been released from the US Olympic team.
Rapinoe, 38, announced her retirement from international football earlier this year, with the World Cup being her last outing with the Stars and Stripes. Although she still plies her trade for OL Reign, she's expected to hang up her boots at the end of the 2023 National Women's Soccer League season.
The OL Reign star, though, could still play for the US Olympic team, who she helped win gold in London in 2012, at next year's Olympics in Paris. That would no longer be possible, though, as she has been released from the team, as per the aforementioned report.
The article claims that Rapinoe has been asked to "step aside" from the team for bringing negative attention. It added that the player has also been released by OL Reign, forcing her into early retirement. However, those claims are wide of the mark.
Megan Rapinoe has not been axed from US Olympic team
None of the claims in the article are true, though, as The Dunning-Kruger Times is a popular parody website. The website is well-known for publishing satirical content. They clarify on the website that everything they report is entirely fictional.
The Dunning-Kruger Times' report on Megan Rapinoe appears true due to the heat she's receiving following the USWNT's early World Cup exit. Many fans have been calling for Rapinoe to be axed from the team after she missed her penalty in the shootout. One tweeted:
"Who else agrees Megan Rapinoe should be immediately released from the United States Women’s soccer team?"
The aforementioned report not being true does not mean that Rapinoe will feature for the US Olympic team in Paris next year. The two-time Women's World Cup winner is expected to retire entirely this year.
