LGBTQ fans assured they are ‘heard and seen’ as USWNT duo address Korbin Albert’s anti-gay posts

The captain of the U.S. women’s national soccer team and one of its most decorated senior players have publicly voiced their disappointment on behalf of the squad following Korbin Albert’s anti-LGBTQ activity on social media.

Lindsey Horan and Alex Morgan made an unexpected appearance at the USWNT media call Wednesday to deliver a prepared statement on the matter, which they said had been discussed internally within the camp. 

Last week, midfielder Albert was discovered to have shared anti-gay and anti-trans posts on TikTok.

It was also revealed that her Instagram activity included liking a post that mocked Megan Rapinoe’s misfortune in sustaining an Achilles injury in November, which proved to be a career-ending moment for the former FIFA World Player of the Year in the NWSL Championship game.

Rapinoe went public with her disappointment a week ago via an Instagram story post, choosing not to name Albert — although she later confirmed that her message was directed at the 20-year-old PSG player.

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Albert quickly issued an apology, again via an Instagram story, although she made no mention in it of Rapinoe or the LGBTQ community more widely. She has not commented since.

Appearing at the team’s media call on Zoom ahead of Saturday’s SheBelieves Cup opener against Japan in Atlanta, Horan told reporters: “We just want to address the disappointing situation regarding Korbin that has unfolded over this past week.

“We’ve worked extremely hard to uphold the integrity of this national team through all of the generations, and we are extremely, extremely sad that this standard was not upheld.

“Our fans and our supporters feel like this is a team that they can rally behind, and it’s so important that they feel and continue to feel undeniably heard and seen.”

Morgan, who like Rapinoe is a two-time World Cup winner, added: “We stand by maintaining a safe and respectful space, especially as allies and members of the LGBTQ+ community. 

“This platform has given us an opportunity to highlight causes that matter to us, something that we never take for granted.”

The two senior players had not originally been listed as being due to appear on the call.

Mallory Swanson was, and when she joined the call soon after, she was asked to comment by one reporter. The forward replied: “I appreciate the question. But as Alex and Lindsey said… we have internal conversations and we let those conversations stay internal.”

At least two players in the current USWNT squad are LGBTQ and publicly out: defender Tierna Davidson, who is engaged to her partner Alison, and goalkeeper Jane Campbell, who married her wife Christine Nairn — a former USWNT international herself — in December.

The Albert controversy was also discussed on Tuesday’s episode of “The Women’s Game” podcast hosted by former USWNT player Sam Mewis. 

Her guest was forward Lynn Williams, who recently helped the national team to victory in the CONCACAF W Gold Cup alongside Horan and Morgan but who is not part of the SheBelieves Cup squad. Both Mewis and Williams shared Rapinoe’s Instagram story post last week.

They mentioned the past situation involving Jaelene Daniels, nee Hinkle, who won eight caps between 2015 and 2016 but who subsequently withdrew from the USWNT squad rather than wear a jersey with a Pride rainbow shirt number.

Williams said: “Back then, we didn’t know how to approach the situation and we put soccer first.

“I feel like if I’ve learned anything, it’s that some things are bigger than soccer and one of them is human rights and making sure people feel safe In their body and safe in this world.

“This topic is bigger than soccer and women’s soccer has been a safe space for the LGBTQ community and I think it does affect the locker room a little bit.”

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Mewis agreed: “Football aside, as a human being I don’t want To see intolerance being spread and I think our women’s soccer community is a safer place in a lot of ways than society at large.

“We have to support trans people, gay people because those groups are marginalized in society. This space doesn’t accept that whether that’s because of the women who have come before us and the people that we know and love.”

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