It’s the end of an era for the United States Women’s National Team (USWNT).
Longtime captain and stalwart defender Becky Saurbrunn has officially announced her retirement. She joins the ever-growing list of USWNT veterans who also announced their retirements earlier this year, such as Alex Morgan, Kelly O’Hara, and goalkeeper Alyssa Naeher.
The 39-year-old took to Instagram to make the announcement. Although she took the time to thank the fans and coaches throughout her career, she notably said she wants to stay in the game:
“This isn’t the end. I’ll be around. I love this game too much to leave it for good… Excited to see where I wake up next.”
The defender earned 219 caps with the national team, joining a list of 14 players to surpass 200 appearances for the USWNT. She is a two-time World Cup champion (2015 and 2019), four-time CONCACAF Women’s Champion, and five-time SheBelieves Cup champion. Thanks to her selfless mentality, she earned the nickname “The People’s Captain”, becoming an unsung U.S. Women’s National Team hero. She is also an outspoken advocate of pay equity and equal rights.
She spent the majority of her career in the United States, although spent one season at Roa IL, a top-flight Norwegian team in 2008, and contributed to the team’s league title that season. Afterward, she returned to the NWSL for a career that spanned 19 seasons. She most recently played for the Portland Thorns, winning a total of five trophies in four years.
She is a three-time NWSL champion and a four-time NWSL Defender of the Year. She has been named in the NWSL Best 11 seven times in her career, more than any other player.
She currently co-hosts a podcast with Sam Mewis on “The Women’s Game”, and it remains to be seen in what capacity she will remain in the sport following her retirement.
