The United States women’s national team beat Colombia 4-0 in a Monday friendly, and eyes will be trained on the team before the rematch on Friday.
Four USWNT players all stood up during the national anthem while seven teammates knelt in solitary with the Black Lives Matter movement, opening up questions well beyond Sam Mewis’ hat trick.
The women wore track jackets with “Black Lives Matter” across the front as Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day was observed across the United States.
[ MORE: How to watch USWNT - Colombia, preview ]
Ali Krieger was one of the seven who knelt during “The Star-Spangled Banner,” with Alyssa Naeher, Abby Dahlkemper, Becky Sauerbrunn, Crystal Dunn, Lynn Williams, and Megan Rapinoe also taking the knee. Earlier this week, Rapinoe issued strong words on the Capitol uprising.
Here’s Krieger.
“These have been tough conversations within our team, and not everyone agrees with each other and their decisions,” she said, via On Her Turf’s Alex Azzi. “I also believe that – no matter how much the flag has meaning – that type of material is not as important as a human being’s life, and Black and brown lives.”
Carli Lloyd was one of four players to stand for the anthem. She was joined by Julie Ertz, Kelley O’Hara, and Lindsey Horan.
Lloyd said that she’s been spending the pandemic “tucked away” from soccer and issued this statement on standing.
“I think the beauty of this team is that we stand behind each other no matter what,” she said. “And, you know, players decided to kneel, some players decided to stand, and at the end of the day, we have each other’s backs.”
Kickoff between the USWNT and Colombia is at 7pm ET Friday in Orlando, Florida.
