USWNT players share cute moments with their dads ahead of Father's Day Women's World Cup game
REIMS, France - As Father’s Day nears, players on the U.S. Women’s National Team sent well wishes to their fathers and talked about funny moments they’ve had with their dads.
Players Alex Morgan, Becky Sauerbrunn, Mallory Pugh and Rose Lavelle were among some of the players interviewed about their dads in a Fox Sports segment. Each woman, who is currently playing in the Women’s World Cup in France, wished their dad a happy Father’s Day.
Morgan said her father is in France with her, following her to every game.
“Thank you so much for your support. It means the world to me,” she said. “To see you pushing me and supporting me and always wanting me to chase my dreams meant everything. I hope I make you proud this tournament.”
Pugh recalled her father always rushing through errands to get her to her club team practices earlier than usual. She said she would want to get to the practices at least 30 minutes early just to hang out after a long day at school.
“Now I realize that it was kind of ridiculous, but it was fun,” she said.
Pugh went on to thank her father for “always pushing me to my limits and believing in me.”
Lavelle said her father “makes life a lot more fun” with his sense of humor.
When she was playing basketball in school, she said she’d asked her parents to get her a drink at the concession stand. The stand happened to be right across from the free-throw line for her team and when she ended up in the spot, her father called for her attention to pick what kind of drink she’d want in the middle of the game.
“(He’s) trying to get me to decide which drink I want while I’m trying to make my free throw – that’s an example of him,” she said.
Sauerbrunn said her dad inspired her to move forward and focus on her soccer career.
She recalled a moment when she was young and would rotate positions on her team. In one instance, she was goalkeeper and said her team lost the game because she was unable to block goals.
On their drive home, Sauerbrunn recalled wanting to quit soccer and move on to another sport she might be better at.
“I just remember my dad being like, ‘That’s going to happen. You’re going to make mistakes, but that’s all about sports. That’s all about life,’” she said. “So he’s just been someone who’s always been supportive and just loved me through everything.”
The USWNT beat Thailand 13-0 Tuesday during their first game in the group stage of the Women’s World Cup. Morgan tied for a record by scoring five goals during the game, while the entire team broke a record for the most goals scored.
USWNT faces off against Chile – who are making their Women’s World Cup debut – on Sunday.
Watch the 2019 FIFA Women’s World Cup on FOX from June 7 through July 7.