Emotional Alex Morgan leaves final game in San Diego early

Striker Alex Morgan played 15 minutes on Sunday and saved a penalty in her final game as a professional for San Diego Wave FC.

Morgan, a two-time world champion and Olympic gold medalist, announced Thursday that the Wave’s NWSL home game at Snapdragon Stadium against the North Carolina Courage would be the last of her nearly 14-year career at the international and professional level.

On Sunday, Casey Murphy, North Carolina Courage goalkeeper and one of Morgan’s teammates on the U.S. national team in recent years, prevented Morgan’s dream exit. Morgan stepped up in the 10th minute after the Wave were awarded a penalty, but Murphy saved her shot with his left foot.

San Diego equalised three minutes later and Morgan began to leave the field after just over 13 minutes – a nod to the number 13 she wore for her club and country for the past decade.

She took off her boots in midfield, waved tearfully and blew kisses to the crowd – fans chanted her name – as players from both teams surrounded her and applauded. She was replaced by striker Amirah Ali.

The game was the first women’s sporting event to be shown simultaneously on multiple channels in the United States, including the ESPN networks. The Sunday night game was originally scheduled to air on NWSL+ and Paramount+.

Morgan said Friday that she would play “limited” minutes on Sunday. On Thursday, she announced that in addition to her retirement, she was pregnant with her second child.

The veteran USWNT was part of the teams that won the 2015 and 2019 World Championships and won an Olympic gold medal in 2012 and a bronze medal in 2021. She scored 123 goals for the USWNT, the fifth-most in the program’s history, and is one of only seven players to score 100 or more goals.

Morgan played in four World Cups, but her breakthrough came in the 2011 edition when the USWNT lost the final to Japan on penalties.

At the national level, Morgan won the inaugural NWSL title with the Portland Thorns in 2013. In her rookie season in 2011, she also won a professional title with the Western New York Flash in Women’s Professional Soccer, the predecessor of the NWSL.

Morgan won the 2022 NWSL Golden Boot, scoring 15 goals in 17 games and helping the Waves become the NWSL’s first expansion team to qualify for the playoffs in its inaugural season. Last year, the Waves won the NWSL Shield as the best team in the NWSL regular season.

She played in 150 NWSL games, including 63 for San Diego. In 2017, Morgan joined Lyon on a short-term contract and won the treble, including the UEFA Champions League.

Morgan wore the captain’s armband for San Diego on Sunday.

Her daughter, 4-year-old Charlie, was her mascot during the parade and the national anthem. Charlie wore a Wave jersey with “MOM 13” emblazoned on the back. Morgan said she expected about 80 family and friends to attend Sunday’s game, most of whom joined her on the field before the game.