The Rush: Megan Rapinoe on bad reffing, following in Tom Brady’s footsteps and farting faux pas

Soccer star and activist Megan Rapinoe joins The Rush to chat with Jared about the evolution of the NWSL and women’s sports, the root cause of the NWSL’s poor officiating and how their refs rank among the worst in pro sports, how she can benefit from Tom Brady’s megadeal to become a broadcaster after he retires from the NFL and her source at Lyon reveals the truth behind the Marcelo farting scandal that has rocked the soccer world… seriously. Plus, Megan explains how quitting can be a good thing, as she partners with Schmidt’s Naturals to form a Quitter’s Support Group. Check out her post to learn how you can join the group and win prizes!

Video Transcript

MEGAN RAPINOE: Listen, when I'm badgering these refs, like, I see the look in their eye, too. Like, I feel bad for them, too. They're like, well, what did I get myself into, and like, why am I here being abused by everyone? It's 'cause you can't keep control of the game. Anyways.

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JARED QUAY: What's up, everybody? I'm here with OL Reign star, two-time World Cup champion, Olympic champion, and champion of human and civil rights, Megan Rapinoe. How are you doing today, Megan?

MEGAN RAPINOE: I'm good. How are you? How are you? It's nice to be here.

JARED QUAY: I'm glad. You see all the introductions I gave you, a couple of good ones

MEGAN RAPINOE: I know.

JARED QUAY: You got a lot of intro.

MEGAN RAPINOE: I know. I got to bring it everywhere.

JARED QUAY: We're approaching the 10-year anniversary of the creation of the NWSL. When you first joined the league, did you expect to still be here a decade later?

MEGAN RAPINOE: Super proud, obviously, to be suiting up for my 10th year, but I think more so, just everything that's happened around, you know, women's sports in general but certainly, women's soccer in this country. And to see where we are today, adding a couple of new teams this year. You know, We're playing at Lumen Field this year back in Seattle which is great. So I'm hoping, you know, not just for the NWSL but for the WNBA, as well, and other sports leagues that this would be a great summer for us.

JARED QUAY: And you've done a lot in this decade, I will say that. It's [INAUDIBLE] a lot.

MEGAN RAPINOE: I've been working.

- I'm busy.

MEGAN RAPINOE: It's early in the season and your team already fell victim to a bad missed call by the refs which happens a lot in sports. So I mean, not to put you on the spot, but which league would you say has the worst officiating?

MEGAN RAPINOE: I mean, the worst officiating is always going to be in a women's league, because we have the least funding. You know, oftentimes, we feel like the mistakes are being made, because the understanding or the level is just not consistent with what is happening on the field which, obviously, then feels very unfair. So I don't want to hear about any, like, you know, Scott Foster didn't see the fingernail tip on an out of bounds and neither did the 900 cameras. Everybody can miss me with that. We know-- we know where the most improvement can be made.

JARED QUAY: And it's hard to get all the correct calls when you've got to get to your second job, so you can pay your bills [INAUDIBLE].

MEGAN RAPINOE: Exactly, right? I mean, come on.

JARED QUAY: Tom Brady, reportedly, signed a 10-year broadcasting contract worth nearly $400 million which kicks in when he retires from the NFL. So my question to you is, what's your dream job when you retire from soccer, and will you do it for anything less than $350 million?

MEGAN RAPINOE: Yeah, I guess, the standard has been set. I guess, I'm going into football commentating. I mean, it can't be that hard, right? It's like they're doing-- if I was Tom, I'd probably be quitting football right now and just going directly into it. You know, that'll probably serve him better for his future. But yeah, that's just insane. I wish he would quit taking all of that check and just pass half of it to me. That'd be fine.

- Some for you. Some for you.

JARED QUAY: Reports say that veteran footballer Marcelo was demoted by Lyon, because he constantly farted around teammates and management. So I just got to know what are your thoughts about that, 'cause that's such a crazy story?

MEGAN RAPINOE: I mean, that's far out, losing a check because you can't so farting and laughing around. I mean, that's just like-- I did reach out to a homie and Lyon lately. I think, they said it was true. And, you know, sometimes in French, they can be a little uptight. Maybe it was just one or two farts, and then I don't know what happened. But that-- I just saw that today. And I'm just like, you won't catch me losing a check over farts.

JARED QUAY: But it had to be that last one. Look, you got one more fart, Marcelo.

MEGAN RAPINOE: You've got one more in you, and then you do it again. Like, it's just cra-- I'm just like, what's going on? Obviously, there's something more going on. We're going to need to get down to the bottom of that. But yeah, that's-- it could be a digestion issue or like an allergy, so.

JARED QUAY: The notion of quitting is a big no, no in sports culture. But you're here today partnering with Schmidt's Naturals to talk about the positives of quitting. In your experience when is bowing out being an act of courage?

MEGAN RAPINOE: You now, there's, of course, like in sports culture, there is something to working, and grinding, and you know, sort of sacrificing and putting it all on the line. I feel like quitting something, or changing your approach, or moving on to something else in an effort to actually fulfill yourself, I think that can be really courageous and really positive. You know, the owner and the founder, Jamie Schmidt, you know, quit her just normal job which I'm sure was safe and comfortable and you know, decided to do something different, do something that served her and fulfilled her, not from, you know, not only from a creative perspective but putting something grayed out into the world. So I love the idea of giving people courage to do that.

JARED QUAY: How can people watching right now join you on your quitter support group?

MEGAN RAPINOE: Yeah, so we have a little contest going on right now. I believe it's on my Instagram page. We have a little video up there. But drop in the comments, share a story about your career just quitting, and we're going to pick some winners. Me and Jamie are going to have a conversation, have a little support group, if you will. So we'll invite the winners into there. And then there's a gift card available, I believe, it's $1,500 gift card for a retreat for the winners to go off and do their thing, and kind of recenter themselves, and find what fulfills them. And if it means quitting a few things in the process, then we're here to support you.

JARED QUAY: I'll start first I'm quitting dessert from now on, after today. I'm going to get some more dessert today, but tomorrow--

MEGAN RAPINOE: After tonight, obviously, after dinner, after I do--

JARED QUAY: Megan, thank you so much for rushing with me today, and thanks for sharing the positive aspects of quitting. I appreciate you dearly, and good luck to you this season. I can't wait for America to win another World Cup, 'cause I know it's happening.

MEGAN RAPINOE: Word. Thank you. Appreciate it.