Alex Morgan Recalls How 2019 World Cup Helped Fight Pregnancy Announcement Backlash

“Why would you choose that over your career?” Imagine hearing that the moment you announce your pregnancy, the very moment you expected joy. That’s exactly what Alex Morgan faced in October 2019. At the time, she was unstoppable: 2019 FIFA Women’s World Cup champion, co-captain, and scoring goals like no one else. But instead of congratulations, she got judgment. After five years of marriage to Servando Carrasco, she had chosen the right time to start a family, and all she got was backlash. And now, six years later, she’s finally speaking out about the criticism that tried to overshadow her joy.

Just recently, on September 3, 2025, Alex Morgan joined the podcast Call Her Daddy. There, she finally opened up about the backlash she faced when announcing her pregnancy. Host Alex Cooper asked, “I remember when you announced your pregnancy, and people immediately were freaking out… What is this going to do for her ability to play the sport?” Morgan replied calmly but candidly, “So, when I got pregnant with my first, Charlie, this was when I was 29, at the height of my career. Now, players like Mallory Swanson and Sophia Smith are pregnant at 24, 28… But at the time, it wasn’t so common.”

Charlie Elena Carrasco, her firstborn, arrived on May 7, 2020, yet back then, many still believed that pregnancy or starting a family would “ruin” a career for elite women athletes. In reality, athletes can train safely during pregnancy and return to peak form postpartum with proper guidance. Things are different now. Both Mallory Swanson and Sophia Smith (now Wilson) announced their pregnancies in 2025 to celebrate. Sophia Wilson, after marrying NFL player Michael Wilson, welcomed her first child in September 2025. But Morgan recalls, “People were definitely like, ‘How could she do this? I can’t… she’s never going to get back to where she was before.’” And that doubt would weigh heavily in her next steps.

Even Alex Morgan admitted to questioning herself. “And I myself had a little bit of fear for that before I got pregnant. And once I got pregnant… was in go mode…was like, ‘No, I’m going to get back to playing… going to have my daughter…’” But she added honestly, “But yeah, it was not like the happy congrats.” The truth is, Morgan returned to professional soccer just six months after pregnancy.

In November 2020, Morgan joined Tottenham Hotspur for a short stint in the FA Women’s Super League, debuting on November 7 in a 1-1 draw against Reading and starting her first match a week later against Bristol City. But at 29, why start a family at her career peak?

Alex Morgan revealed the real reason she chose family over career

At the height of her career, Alex Morgan felt she had achieved almost everything she set out to do. “I always wanted to be a mom,” she shared on a podcast. “Honestly, the confidence that I had growing through that year — between the lawsuit, between winning the World Cup, um, scoring many goals, getting, like, the Silver Boot in the World Cup like, I felt really good about myself.”

Morgan had done everything she could and more for soccer, but now, it was her time and her life. She followed her heart and started a family, welcoming her second child, Enzo, via IVF in March 2025, “And after that, I was like, “I’ve done everything I’ve wanted to do. I’m not done playing soccer, but I have been able to accomplish everything I’ve wanted to. Now it’s my turn in life to do what I want to do.“

But in 2024, Morgan retired from professional soccer in September. Finally, she ended a 15-year career filled with achievements. FIFA Women’s World Cup Champion (2015, 2019), Olympic Gold (2012) and Bronze (2020), NWSL Championship (2013), and the 2024 NWSL Challenge Cup. Her final match was with the San Diego Wave FC against the North Carolina Courage. But why did she retire?

“I just felt like this was the right time,”Alex Morgan said. “I felt like the last couple of weeks I’ve sort of lost a step, you know, in playing and I felt like for my body and my mind and my heart, this was the right decision at this time.” However, she remains active in the sport as a minority investor in San Diego Wave FC. Yes, she did lose “a step” at the end of her career, but only because she was busy chasing toddlers instead of defenders. And honestly? That might be her toughest opponent yet.