Call Her Daddy – Episode Summary

Guest: Alex Morgan
Theme: Soccer, Sexualization, & Suing US Soccer
Release Date: September 3, 2025
Host: Alex Cooper

Overview

In this empowering and candid episode, Alex Cooper sits down with soccer superstar and activist Alex Morgan to trace her journey from a determined seven-year-old with a post-it-sized dream to a world champion, equality trailblazer, and retiring icon. The conversation navigates Morgan’s legendary soccer career, the realities of sexualization and double standards, the emotional toll of fighting for equal pay, motherhood as an athlete, and what’s next for women’s sports. Unfiltered, emotional, and often hilarious, the episode gives listeners a front-row seat to the stories behind Morgan’s most consequential victories—both on and off the pitch.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

Childhood Dreams and Early Career

• Dream Beginnings ([10:16]):

  • Morgan shares how, at age 7, she boldly declared she wanted to be a professional soccer player, writing it on a sticky note to her mother, inspired by following her sisters’ lead.
  • She credits her parents, particularly her mom’s willingness to support wild ambitions (flying across the country, buying season tickets even if they couldn’t attend), for enabling her dreams:
    "My mom took me to Mia Ham's retirement game... She was like, let's do this. I'll do anything to help you become a professional soccer player—which, by the way, there was, like, little to no avenue to do that at the time." ([10:16] - Alex Morgan)

• The Power of Parental Confidence ([12:47]):

  • Morgan recounts how her dad, despite knowing little about soccer, “instilled confidence” in her, reinforcing after every game:
    "You are the best... you need to believe that when you step on the field, because you are. In my eyes, you deserve better." ([12:47] - Alex Morgan)

• Overcoming Doubt and Rejection ([14:12]):

  • She describes being told by a coach as a teen she was “not good enough” for the team, only to get a long, apologetic text from him years later:
    "It was like, I'm so sorry... I really apologize for what I said, but it seems like you've done well for yourself… I was just like, fuck this." ([14:39] - Alex Morgan)

Breaking Into the National Team & Early Success

• Rookie Imposter Syndrome ([15:45]):

  • As the youngest player on the 2011 World Cup roster, Morgan felt like she should lay low:
    “I was like, don’t make a peep… I could not be more opposite than these young players coming in [now] like, ‘I have arrived.’ I was like, ‘Don’t do anything to get anyone to look at you.’” ([15:45] - Alex Morgan)
  • On “imposter syndrome” and not fully shaking it:
    “Sometimes I still feel like I’m living through that… Millions of people are watching me play… It still feels a little weird… I don’t know if you ever get over it.” ([17:42] - Alex Morgan)

• Evolution of Confidence & Celebrating Wins ([18:58]):

  • Morgan points to the 2019 World Cup as a turning point for collective confidence and celebration:
    “We were like, owning our shit... We filed an equal pay lawsuit against US Soccer… We know that winning this is going to help our case, and we are the best… We carried that confidence in a way women don’t usually feel comfortable being able to do." ([18:58] - Alex Morgan)

Double Standards in Women’s Sports

• Pressures of Being a Role Model ([22:47]):

  • Morgan discusses the expectation that female athletes must always be role models—in ways male athletes are rarely asked to be:
    “Female athletes are expected to just be the most incredible, perfect role model… Do you do it for the young girls? Do you want to inspire the next generation? It’s always that.” ([22:11] - Alex Morgan)
  • After her breakthrough in 2012, she felt forced to “watch what I’m saying, watch what I’m doing” and stifled her true personality in public:
    “I couldn’t necessarily show everybody who I was… I didn’t want to be criticized for not being a good role model. So I just showed people what they wanted to see and hear.” ([23:36] - Alex Morgan)

• The Burden of Perfection and Boundaries ([26:38]):

  • Alex Cooper sums up:
    “Anything less than perfect, then you’re probably a— or you have some type of problem… all of a sudden, you’re like, wait, just because I created a little bit of a boundary for myself because I just played a 90 minute game and now I just want to, like, quickly go rinse off and not take sweaty pictures for an hour...”

The “Tea” Celebration and Gendered Public Criticism

• Viral Moment at the 2019 World Cup ([28:39]):
  • The infamous “sipping tea” celebration against England sparked massive backlash:
    “I never celebrate. I never ever had a celebration planned, ever… I had one celebration my whole life… and people wanted to kill me over it.” ([29:09] - Alex Morgan)
  • Morgan and Cooper contrast this with celebrations by male athletes, highlighting the double standard:
    “Can we pull up every insane dance gesture guys have done?... but you sipped tea… and they’re like, you’re dead. Meanwhile, men are doing crazy shit and people are like, ‘That’s my player!’” ([30:29] - Alex Cooper)

Sexualization and Being in the Public Eye

• Looks Over Talent ([35:07]):

  • Morgan reflects on the strange experience of seeing her athletic accomplishments trivialized by focus on her appearance (from fans and even FIFA):
    “I can’t complain. I got a lot of opportunities because of it, but… it was cringy… this is really weird.” ([35:07] - Alex Morgan)
  • Cooper reads a FIFA passage:
    “…a talented goal-scorer with a style that is very easy on the eye and good looks to match…”

• Reactions and Team Dynamics ([39:14]):

  • Morgan recalls supportive teammates, but also some “side comments” that reinforced tension about appearance:
    “Most of my teammates were really, like, we were all super supportive… I'd say there was like one or two teammates that were like, ‘Well, I don’t wear makeup like some of my teammates…’” ([39:14] - Alex Morgan)

• Private Feelings and Pressures ([37:50]):

  • Morgan admits to insecurity, notably struggling with acne due to her intense athletic regimen, sunscreen, and makeup:
    “I was super self-conscious, because I knew in a lot of ways, a lot of the conversation was about my looks… I just never wanted to overanalyze.” ([37:50] - Alex Morgan)

Motherhood and New Challenges

• Pregnancy Scrutiny ([40:16]):

  • Morgan discusses the shock and concern the soccer world had when she announced her pregnancy mid-career:
    “It was not, like, the happy, like, congrats and we can’t wait for you to have your baby and get back out on the field type reception I thought it would be.” ([40:35] - Alex Morgan)
  • Cooper:
    “Public’s reaction to your pregnancy… it’s like, this should be a joint decision of the country. Put it on your Instagram story and let’s all do a poll if Alex is allowed to have a kid or not…” ([44:09] - Alex Cooper)

• Being a Mom While Competing ([45:34]):

  • Morgan had to negotiate unprecedented terms for traveling with her daughter—rules and support for mothers simply didn’t exist:
    “We had to write… an agreement with the general manager at Orlando that my daughter could travel with me and a child care provider... They pushed back on coming into the meal room... it was writing all these rules that had never been written before.” ([45:34] - Alex Morgan)
  • On setting new standards by demanding a separate seat for her daughter on flights:
    “I said, I’m sorry, I cannot go on this trip if you don’t get a seat for my daughter… I will walk off this bus.” ([48:20] - Alex Morgan)

Fighting for Equal Pay

• How the Lawsuit Began ([51:15]):

  • Morgan details the gap in pay and the rationale behind suing the US Soccer Federation:
    “We were seeing revenue… we were generating revenue for US Soccer like never before… We are doing the same job for the same company as the men but getting paid vastly different and getting treated vastly different… So we went to US Soccer and we filed a lawsuit.” ([51:15] - Alex Morgan)

• Personal Risks and the Toll ([55:00]):

  • The risks included getting cut, losing future opportunity and sponsorships which made up most of her income:
    “The risk was, like, you could be cut… You might not have a future in soccer… For me especially, it was like 90 to 95% of my annual income was off the field, but I spent 90 to 95% of my time on soccer.” ([55:00] - Alex Morgan)

• Facing Sexism and Backlash ([56:01]):

  • Morgan recalls hearing outright sexism—even from leadership:
    “One of the board members... gets on the mic and goes, ‘Our women's team is so disappointing. They disgust me. They don't deserve to be paid what they're asking for…’ After, people in the room [were] clapping.” ([56:01] - Alex Morgan)
  • US Soccer’s defense in court:
    “Their main argument was that the man bears more responsibility because they are inherently faster and stronger... basically saying, like, women are inherently inferior. That’s... we dragged them.” ([58:10] - Alex Morgan)

• Winning the Lawsuit and its Impact ([61:38]):

  • Holding her daughter while signing the settlement:
    “When we settled and achieved equal pay… I was holding my daughter when we signed it… Over 500 hours of our own time… You never knew if… this was going to ever happen… You didn’t know what kind of effect this could possibly even have in sports.” ([61:38] - Alex Morgan)
  • On not reaping most of the benefits herself but choosing to fight anyway:
    “My hope is my daughter knows nothing other than equal... because I played some small part in it.” ([67:20] - Alex Morgan)

The Legacy, Retirement, and Future of Women’s Sports

• Mentorship and Paving the Way ([34:26] / [67:20]):

  • Morgan celebrates the new generation of women athletes who can unapologetically take up space:
    “I just love when I see an 18 year old, like Trinity Rodman, showing up and being like, this is me. Take it or leave it. I don’t care. I love that.” ([34:26] - Alex Morgan)

• Retirement ([69:48]):

  • Morgan describes deciding to retire—having an “epiphany” with her husband over wine:
    “I’m ready to have more babies. I’m ready to hang up the boots… I feel like I did anything and everything I could have ever dreamed of and beyond in soccer. There’s nothing left I need to accomplish.” ([70:08] - Alex Morgan)
  • On the hardest part:
    “The hardest part was telling people… once I made the decision, it was like the biggest weight off of my shoulders.” ([70:42] - Alex Morgan)

• Jersey Retirement and Ownership ([74:06] / [74:47]):

  • The emotion of seeing her jersey retired:
    “You see male athletes get their jersey retired, but as a female athlete… goes the double standard. You just don’t think that that will happen to me because I’m a female athlete.” ([74:06] - Alex Morgan)
  • On becoming an investor in her team (San Diego), and the growth of the NWSL:
    “I’m proud of where the League has come… I wanted to invest back in the League at the team level… my daughter is jumping up and down with her posters… It’s so cool.” ([74:57] - Alex Morgan)

Memorable Quotes

Alex Morgan [14:39]:
“I got a text from [my old coach]... ‘I’m so sorry. I was in the wrong headspace at the time…’ I was just like, fuck this. I’m not giving this the time of day at all.”

Alex Morgan [22:11]:
“Female athletes are expected to just be the most incredible, perfect role model... Is that why you play soccer? To inspire the next generation? It's always that.”

Alex Morgan [29:09]:
“I celebrated... and I sipped some tea in front of the world and Britain as we beat them. Yes, I did that. And then they came after me with vengeance... people wanted to kill me over it.”

Alex Morgan [51:15]:
“We are doing the same job for the same company as the men but getting paid vastly different and getting treated vastly different. We're sitting in 27B and the men are in 2A.”

Alex Cooper [55:00]:
“Soccer was like 5 to 10% of my annual income, but I spent like 90 to 95% of my time on it.”

Alex Morgan [61:38]:
“When we settled and achieved equal pay and millions—over $20 million back pay—I was holding my daughter when we signed it. It was a really special moment.”

Alex Morgan [67:20]:
"My hope is my daughter knows nothing other than equal... because I played some small part in it."

Timestamps to Key Segments

• Childhood & Family Influence: [10:16]–[14:12]
• Team Dynamics & Imposter Syndrome: [15:45]–[18:58]
• Role Model Pressure & Double Standards: [22:47]–[27:58]
• The ‘Tea’ Celebration & Public Backlash: [28:39]–[31:04]
• Sexualization & Looks Over Talent: [35:07]–[39:50]
• Motherhood & Breaking Barriers: [40:16]–[48:20]
• Equal Pay Lawsuit: [51:15]–[61:38]
• Legacy, Retirement & League Growth: [67:20]–[76:32]

Tone & Atmosphere

The conversation is intimate, frank, and relatable. Cooper’s admiration for Morgan sets a supportive tone, and Morgan combines humility and authenticity with sharp, sometimes biting humor (“I’m still waiting for my tea sponsorship” [30:57]). Both speakers highlight the absurdities of sexism in sports, often using sarcasm to underscore the broader systemic issues.

Takeaways

• Morgan’s Career is Defined by More Than Soccer: Her most meaningful legacy comes from fighting for others—standing up for equal pay, setting new standards as a mother-athlete, and opening doors for the next generation.
• Double Standards Remain Profound: From media coverage to sponsor treatment to what’s considered “appropriate” celebration or appearance, women athletes continually face and challenge inequity.
• Change is Both Personal and Structural: Morgan’s journey shows how one person’s willingness to challenge unfair systems can yield far-reaching benefits, even when they may not personally profit most.
• Women Together are Unstoppable: Repeatedly, both Cooper and Morgan point out that the power of collective action—across generations and circles—can change entire industries.
• The Future Is Brighter—But the Work Continues: With growing fanbases, investment, and normalization of women’s sports as entertainment and opportunity, the foundation set by Morgan and her cohort is only the beginning.

For Listeners

Even if you know little about soccer, the episode offers universal lessons about setting boundaries, persevering in adversity, advocating for yourself and others, and using your platform for good. Alex Morgan’s story is not just every athlete’s story—it’s every woman’s story.

End of summary.