Carli Lloyd is without doubt a legend for the United States Women’s National Team, but she doesn’t think that was always the plan when she was first coming up with the team.
During a recent interview for the CBS Sports show “Kickin’ It,” Carli Lloyd said that she doesn’t think the USWNT wanted her to become a star for the team.
“I came into the U.S. Soccer scene and I wasn’t somebody that was necessarily being groomed to be the star of the team, nor do I think U.S. Soccer really wanted me to be the star of the team. I think that they pretty much probably want to see others rise,” Lloyd said.
"I came into the U.S. soccer scene, I wasn't necessarily being groomed to be the star of the team nor do I think U.S. soccer wanted me to be the star of the team."@CarliLloyd does not hold back on tomorrow night's brand new episode of Kickin' It, premiering at 8pm ET on… pic.twitter.com/R9fu17qC74
— CBS Sports Golazo ⚽️ (@CBSSportsGolazo) October 10, 2023
“Essentially I feel like they groom players coming in to be the stars, and then when someone else comes in, it’s sort of a resistance of: What can we do? Can we not publicize this player as much or give them enough attention? I felt like that throughout my entire career,” Lloyd continued.
Obviously, that’s not how it played out as Lloyd became a star anyway, scoring 134 goals in 316 appearances across her 16-year career with the team, including a hat-trick in the 2015 FIFA Women’s World Cup Final against Japan.