Alex Morgan
Alexandra Morgan Carrasco is an American former professional soccer player. She co-captained the United States national team with Carli Lloyd and Megan Rapinoe from 2018 to 2020 and with Lindsey Heaps in 2023.
Shortly after graduating early from the University of California, Berkeley, where she played for the California Golden Bears, Morgan was drafted number one overall in the 2011 WPS Draft by the Western New York Flash. There, she made her professional debut and helped the team win the league championship. Morgan, who was 22 at the time, was the youngest player on the national team at the 2011 FIFA Women's World Cup, where the team was runner-up. At the 2012 London Olympics, she scored the match-winning goal in the 123rd minute of the semi-final match against Canada. She finished 2012 with 28 goals and 21 assists, joining Mia Hamm as the only American woman to score 20 goals and provide 20 assists in the same calendar year and making her the sixth and youngest U.S. player to score 20 goals in a single season. She was subsequently named U.S. Soccer Female Athlete of the Year and was a FIFA World Player of the Year finalist. Morgan also helped the United States win their titles at the 2015 and 2019 FIFA Women's World Cups, where she was named to the Dream Team for both tournaments, while she won the Silver Boot in 2019.
Morgan joined Portland Thorns FC in the NWSL's inaugural season in 2013 and helped the team win the league championship that year. Morgan played for the Thorns through the 2015 season, after which she was traded to the expansion team Orlando Pride. In 2017, Morgan signed with French team Lyon, where she won the continental European treble, which included the UEFA Women's Champions League. Morgan joined the expansion team San Diego Wave FC in 2022; she received the NWSL Golden Boot as the league's top scorer that year and helped win the NWSL Shield the following season.
Off the field, Morgan teamed with Simon & Schuster to write a middle-grade book series about four soccer players: The Kicks. The first book in the series, Saving the Team, debuted at number seven on The New York Times Best Seller list in May 2013. Additionally, a film starring Morgan in her acting debut, Alex & Me, was released in June 2018 where she plays a fictionalized version of herself.
In 2015, Morgan was ranked by Time as the top-paid American women's soccer player, largely due to her numerous endorsement deals. Morgan, along with Canada's Christine Sinclair and Australia's Steph Catley, became the first women's soccer players to appear on the cover of FIFA video games in 2015 – Morgan appeared alongside Lionel Messi on covers of FIFA 16 and also was featured in the Journey on FIFA 19 sold in the United States. She was named one of Time's 100 Most Influential People of 2019 and 2022.
On September 5, 2024, Morgan announced via social media that she would be retiring and her last match would be September 8, 2024.
Early life
Born to Pamela and Michael Morgan in the Los Angeles County suburb of San Dimas, California, Morgan was raised with her two older sisters, Jeni and Jeri, in the nearby suburb of Diamond Bar. She was a multi-sport athlete growing up and began playing soccer at an early age with the American Youth Soccer Organization, and her father was among her first coaches. However, she did not begin playing club soccer until age 14 when she joined Cypress Elite. With the club team, she won the Coast Soccer League under-16 championship and placed third at the under-19 level.Morgan attended Diamond Bar High School, where she was a three-time all-league pick and was named All-American by the National Soccer Coaches Association of America. At the school, she was known for her speed and sprinting ability. Morgan played for Olympic Development Program regional and state teams as well. She later credited the program as an integral part of her development as a soccer player: "... programs like ODP helped me especially because I did come into the club scene late and it was important for me to play as much as possible, play with the best players and learn from the best coaches. That, for me, was crucial to my development."
In 2006, at 17 years old, Morgan was called up to the United States under-20 women's national soccer team. While playing in a scrimmage against the men's junior national team, she sustained an anterior cruciate ligament injury and did not play for the team again until April 2008.
California Golden Bears (2007–2010)
Morgan attended University of California, Berkeley, where she played for the California Golden Bears from 2007 to 2010. She led the Cal Bears in scoring during her first season with the team. During a match against Stanford in the second round of the 2007 NCAA Division I Women's Soccer Championship, Morgan scored an equalizer with less than two minutes left in regulation time, resulting in a 1–1 draw. The team was ultimately defeated during penalty kicks. Despite continued absences due to U.S. national team commitments throughout her collegiate career, Morgan led Cal in scoring and helped the team reach the NCAA Tournament four years in a row, advancing to the second round twice.After being named a candidate for the Hermann Trophy during her junior year, Morgan became the first Golden Bear to be one of the top three finalists for the award. She was one of four finalists for the Honda Sports Award, given to the best overall candidate in each sport.
Morgan finished her collegiate career ranked third all-time in goals scored and points for Cal. She graduated from Berkeley one semester early, with a degree in Political Economy.
Club career
Western New York Flash (2011)
On January 14, 2011, Morgan was the first overall pick in the 2011 WPS Draft by the Western New York Flash. She was the first Cal player to be drafted in the first round of Women's Professional Soccer. Morgan scored her first goal for the Flash during the team's home opener—a 3–0 win over the Atlanta Beat on May 1, 2011. Throughout the 2011 season, she played in 14 matches and scored four goals. The club won the regular season title and the WPS Championship title the same year.Seattle Sounders Women (2012)
After the WPS later suspended operations in early 2012 due to legal and financial difficulties, Morgan joined her national teammates Hope Solo, Sydney Leroux, Megan Rapinoe and Stephanie Cox on the Seattle Sounders Women for the 2012 season. Of her signing, Morgan said, "I am excited to play in a city that is so passionate about soccer. The Sounders have been one of, if not the best fan support in MLS. I can only imagine how Seattle fans would respond to having a full professional women's team in the future."Due to her national team commitments and preparation for the 2012 Summer Olympics, Morgan made three regular season appearances for the club. She scored two goals and served two assist in her 253 minutes on the pitch. With the national teammates' presence on the team, the Sounders sold out nine of their ten home matches at the 4,500 capacity Starfire Stadium. Average attendance during the 2012 season for the Sounders Women was four times higher than the next closest team.
Portland Thorns FC (2013–2015)
On January 11, 2013, Morgan was one of three U.S. national team players to join the Portland Thorns FC for the inaugural season of the National Women's Soccer League via the NWSL Player Allocation. She scored her first goal for the Thorns during the team's home-opener at Jeld-Wen Field in front of 16,479 spectators helping her team defeat the Seattle Reign FC 2–1. She finished the regular season as the team's point leader, and joint scoring leader, with eight goals and five assists. The club finished third during the regular season led by head coach Cindy Parlow Cone. On August 31, 2013, Portland captured the league's inaugural championship title after defeating regular season champions Western New York Flash 2–0; Morgan assisted on the second goal. Morgan was named to the NWSL Second XI on August 28.Morgan returned to the Thorns for the 2014 season led by new head coach Paul Riley. She scored six goals in her 15 appearances for the club. The Thorns finished third during the regular season with a record and advanced to the playoffs for the second consecutive season. The team was defeated by eventual champions FC Kansas City 2–0.
During the 2015 season, Morgan made four appearances for the Thorns due to her national team commitments at the 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup. She scored one goal during a 3–3 draw against the Washington Spirit on August 31. The Thorns finished in sixth place during the regular season with a record.
Orlando Pride (2016)
On October 26, 2015, it was announced that the Thorns had traded Morgan, along with teammate Kaylyn Kyle, to expansion team Orlando Pride in exchange for the Pride's number one picks in the 2015 NWSL Expansion Draft and 2016 NWSL College Draft as well as an international roster spot for the 2016 and 2017 seasons. Morgan scored four goals in her 15 appearances for the Pride. The club finished in ninth place during the regular season with a record led by head coach Tom Sermanni.Lyon (2017)
On January 5, 2017, Morgan signed with French champions Olympique Lyonnais for a reported $33,000 per month. The six-month contract included a mutual option for an additional season.She made her 2016–17 Division 1 Féminine debut on January 14 during a 3–0 win against En Avant de Guingamp and recorded two assists. During a match against ASPTT Albi on March 17, she scored a brace in the second half to help lift the team to a 5–0 win. On May 7, she scored a brace during the team's 9–0 win over ASJ Soyaux after which the club was named league champions for the ninth consecutive season. She scored five goals in her eight appearances during the regular season.
On March 12, Morgan scored a hat-trick against Rodez to lead Lyon to a 6–0 win and advance to the semi-finals of the French Cup. She scored four goals and recorded two assists during the semi-final against Hénin-Beaumont. Lyon won the Cup after a penalty shootout on May 19. Morgan did not play during the French Cup final due to a lingering hamstring injury suffered during a match against Paris Saint-Germain.
Morgan made her 2016–17 UEFA Women's Champions League debut in the first leg of the quarterfinals on March 23 during the team's 2–0 win over VfL Wolfsburg. On June 1, she started in the 2017 UEFA Women's Champions League Final but subbed off after 23 minutes due to the hamstring injury. Lyon won the match after a penalty shootout.