Alex Morgan faced backlash for her epic tea-sipping celebration at the Women’s World Cup – and is using the reaction to make an important point. According to Morgan, critics of female athletes’ celebrations are being sexist.
The U.S. women’s national team forward celebrated her 30th birthday Wednesday, scoring the deciding goal in the USWNT’s 2-1 win versus England and propelling the top-ranked team to the World Cup Final.
After scoring, Morgan sipped a cup of tea — pinky out — trolling England and referencing pop culture all in one smart celebration.
Morgan explained the sexism this way, speaking to ESPN ahead of Sunday’s final: “I feel that there is some sort of double standard for females in sports, to feel like we have to be humble in our successes and have to celebrate, but not too much or in a limited fashion. You see men celebrating all over the world in big tournaments, grabbing their sacks or whatever it is. And when I look at sipping a cup of tea, I am a little taken aback by the criticism.”
