Giving the Power to the Party People — Our Family Crashes Welcome to the Party

Summary

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Welcome to the Party: "Giving the Power to the Party People — Our Family Crashes Welcome to the Party"

Podcast: Welcome to the Party
Hosts: Abby Wambach (B), Julie Foudy (A), with regular mention of Billie Jean King
Date: September 25, 2025

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Overview

In this energetic and heartwarming episode, Abby Wambach and Julie Foudy kick off a new community-centric series: “Give the Power to the Party People.” Rather than focus on celebrity guests, this special is all about answering questions submitted by their families—their foundational “party people”—and introducing a new tradition: audience-driven Q&A sessions.

The hosts explore what qualities they value, family competitiveness, the pursuit of happiness, their favorite walk-up music, pivotal rule changes in sports, influential public figures, and the deeper purpose behind building this women’s sports community. Their playful, vibrant banter sets the tone—a reminder that, as Julie puts it, "The first Party Rule is: have a sh*t ton of fun" ([00:42]).

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Power to the Party People: Launching a New Tradition

• Abby and Julie introduce the idea of regular listener Q&A episodes, encouraging party people to write in with questions ([02:08]).
• “We do want to make this a reoccurring thing that we do once a month, maybe even more if you guys really love it.” — Abby ([02:11])
• They share how they solicited questions from their own families to kick things off.

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2. Family Questions: Values and Qualities

What is the most important quality you look for in the people closest to you?

• Julie: “I look for people who hunt joy... and are seeking it and have fun... yes, we can do hard things, but we can also do fun things” ([04:16]).
• Abby: “I want energy increasers. ...Your dimmer is always turned up, like, to the brightest in all the rooms that you walk into. I want to be around people... who are looking to increase the light.” ([05:00])
• Memorable Quote:
  • “I would be your dimmer forever.” — Julie ([05:43])

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3. Sibling Rivalry: The Ping Pong Champion

• Julie’s son Declan asks, “Who would win in ping pong?” ([07:01])
• Julie proclaims family champion status but notes Ian would protest.
• Abby admits she’s “average” now with a “shot” left ankle and no agility: “I'm gonna give this one to you, Jules. ...Maybe invite me over to your house and I will whoop your kid's asses on that ping pong table.” ([08:50])
• The segment is full of playful trash talk and genuine family energy.

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4. Finding (and Redefining) Happiness

What does happiness mean to you? What does the best possible future look like?

• Abby: “Happiness is not my North Star. It is a byproduct of contentment, of really building a solid life... we chase moments of happiness.” ([11:16])
• Julie: “What brings me happiness... is when I’m with community... there’s joy, there’s laughter, there’s happiness in a sense that... this is important to me—to have that community.” ([12:48])
• Both emphasize redefining ‘enough’ and moving away from the “hamster wheel” of chasing endless achievement.

Memorable Quotes:

• “Defining what enough is, is actually a really big source of happiness for us right now.” — Abby ([11:16])
• “I actually hear you say, I go and play things. And by virtue of playing things, I’m actually getting workouts. And that's really cool. ...I am playing beach volleyball now more. Did you know that?” — Abby ([15:35])

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5. Game Day: Walk-Up Songs and Rituals

• Julie’s daughter Izzy asks: “What’s your favorite walk up song?” ([21:53])
• Abby: “White Stripes or Eminem (‘Lose Yourself’).”
• Julie: “I’m a huge Indigo Girls fan... for a long time, one of my pump up songs... was ‘Watershed’... the lyrics are so good.” ([22:23])
• Shared laughter about copyright paranoia and ESPN moments.

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6. Influencers Beyond the Field

Which public figure influenced your athletic career, but isn't from sports?

• Julie: “The one who signed Title IX into law... Nixon.” Her revelation surprises Abby ([25:01]).
  • “No, Title IX, of course, being the 37 words that have transformed women’s sports in this country... Nixon.” ([26:06])
• Abby: Names Billie Jean King, even bending the question’s rules:
  • “She’s probably the single most important thing that ever happened to women’s sports, period.” ([28:28])
  • Adds: “The 99 women’s team absolutely shaped my career.” ([28:00])

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7. Dream Rule Changes in Sports

• The episode loops back to its playful opener: “One rule in your sport you wish you could change forever. And why?” ([30:36])
• Julie: “I would like the goals to be twice as big so I could actually score.” ([31:31])
• Abby: Proposes football-inspired scoring or bonus multipliers: “Just make the goals worth six points like they do in American football...”
  • “If it’s off a one-touch, direct volley or header finish, you get three goals. Because those are rare.” ([32:24])
• Debunking low-scoring soccer as “2-1” vs. inflated football scores ([33:00]).

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8. Joy, Hope, and Purpose: Why the Podcast Matters

Glennon Doyle’s question, read by Abby:

For Julie: “So many payoffs for your commitment to soccer greatness. What were the costs? What might you have done... if you hadn't pursued soccer greatness?” ([35:34])

• Julie: Reveals she was accepted to Stanford Medical School and almost became a doctor, but chose soccer—and happiness. “No one would have trusted me as a doctor. ...I felt like, oh, that's what you should do. ...It was a life decision. ...There was more joy happening on the soccer side.” ([39:00])
• Abby: “That is why you are a joy hunter, because you’ve been doing it all along, even when there were these great opportunities.” ([40:19])

The Movie Life Question:

“If you’re the main character in the movie of your life, what’s the one thing the crowd is screaming at you to do right now?” ([35:34])

• Julie: “The world needs some hope. Holy shit. They're screaming, ‘Give us some hope.’ ...That is our North Star in so much of what we do in building out this podcast.” ([36:35])
• Abby: “Keep going. ...I want to make the world a little bit better than when I found it... orient this ship toward hope. And that's what we're doing. That's why Welcome to the Party means so much to me.” ([41:40]; [43:27])

Memorable Exchanges:

• “We're just building it as we fly.” — Julie ([44:02])
• “Keep going. Because sometimes you're like, I don't know if I want to keep going into that dark room—but yes, keep going.” — Julie ([44:02])
• “I'm going to orient this ship toward hope.” — Abby ([43:27])

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Notable Quotes

• “I want energy increasers... people who are looking to increase the light in every room.” — Abby ([05:00])
• “Bro, Pressure is a privilege. Just ask the Kinger.” — Julie, paraphrasing Billie Jean King ([07:01])
• “Happiness is a byproduct of contentment.” — Abby ([11:16])
• “The world needs some hope. Holy shit. They're screaming, 'Give us some hope.'” — Julie ([36:35])
• “I'm gonna orient this ship toward hope.” — Abby ([43:27])

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Important Segments & Timestamps

• [02:08] Launching the “Party People” Q&A tradition; call for questions
• [03:40] Most important quality in people close to you: joy hunting, energy bringers
• [07:01] Family ping pong champion discussion
• [10:04] Reflecting on happiness and the meaning of “enough”
• [21:53] Favorite walk-up/pump-up song debate
• [25:01] Public figures who influenced career: Title IX and Billie Jean King
• [30:36] Rule changes in soccer: bigger goals, new scoring systems
• [35:34] Glennon’s question: alternate life paths and living with hope
• [36:35] "Hope" as mission of the podcast and women’s sports community

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Final Notes: Join the Party!

• The hosts encourage listeners to submit questions for future “Give the Power to the Party People” episodes at [e-mail].
• The episode closes with a throwback USWNT “cheer” ([46:03]) and a heartfelt call to “keep going” together—building community, seeking joy, and elevating women’s sports with hope at the center.

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For more, follow on Instagram and TikTok: @welcometothepartyshow, and subscribe to the Welcome to the Party YouTube channel!

Transcript

[A]

One rule in your sport you wish you could change forever. And why?

[B]

Oh, my God. This is an incredible question. I know.

[A]

What is it? What is it? Attention. The party is about to commence. Welcome to the party. What's up, party people? Welcome to the party. I'm Julie Foudy.

[B]

I'm Abby Wambach.

[A]

Abs.

[B]

Yo.

[A]

I am pumped for today. You know why?

[B]

Why?

[A]

Because today we start the tradition of building out the party people questions. We get to hear from them on what they want to hear on this podcast. We. We are forever going to call this Give the Power to the Party People episode. Yes.

[B]

I mean, I think it's very important. And this is going to be a special edition of Give the Power to the Party People. Because while we were thinking about planning this episode and curating and cultivating getting the questions from the party people, we had a thought. We thought, what about our party people? Like the people who've been watching us build this thing for the last many months? What do you think our people would want to know from us? So we have sent out a bat signal like you called it last week, Jules, or the other week to our friends and our families and asked them to give us some questions that we can actually do here today on this pod. I'm actually excited. The questions I got back were kind of sweet and cute and fun. Oh, were they?

[A]

Yeah. And we don't know who we asked yet yet. So this is all surprises. It's going to be fun.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

I don't know the questions. Abby doesn't know the questions. Okay.

[B]

Huh. Huh.

[A]

So do you want to start? And this will be a thing, too. We even have an email for you. Party people.

[B]

Party people questions. Gmail.com if you want to write in. Because we do want to make this a reoccurring thing that we do once a month, maybe even more. If you guys really love it, that if you ask us some questions or you send us an email or comment on our IG posts or TikTok posts or if you can even comment on YouTube. I don't even know if you can comment on YouTube, but if you have any question for us, just ask and we will find you will be worked into our episodes. Like, there's a potential that Billie Jean King might say your name. That's a good question.

[A]

All right. What do you got, abs? Who'd you ask?

[B]

Okay, so I pulled the entirety of my family and I have a gigantic one solid.

[A]

Okay.

[B]

But specifically I polled my children this morning. I was like, okay, let me find this thing. Oh, Here we go. I said, hi, fam, because I think this is kind of funny. I would like to know how you asked your people to. Hi, fam. I'm asking for a favor. Are there any questions you want to ask me and Julie Foudy for our recording today? We're doing an episode, and I just wondered if you guys had any questions for us. Tish responded first, which is very common, and her question was, hi. I've been asked this question a lot this week because she just started as a freshman at Berkeley. And the question reads, what is the most important quality that you look for in the people closest to you?

[A]

Oh, that's a good one, Jules.

[B]

I'm asking you, and then I'll answer.

[A]

That's you're in Glennon's Child. Of course it is. Okay.

[B]

You're gonna get super feely. I'm gonna make you a feely person. That is my dream and goal for this podcast.

[A]

Wait, am I answering first? You said?

[B]

Yeah, I want you to answer first.

[A]

The most important thing we look for in someone close to us.

[B]

Close to us. Yeah. Important quality that you look for in the people closest to you.

[A]

I would say. And this is a huge reason why, Abs, when we were talking about doing this podcast, full disclosure, why? I was like, heck, yes, I would love to do it, because I look for people who hunt Joy. To quote Dr. Colleen Hacker, in life, who hunt joy all the time and are seeking it and have fun and, like, yes, we can do hard things, but we can also do fun things and all those things. So I think that's probably one of the main character traits.

[B]

Same seek, same Z. Yeah, I think that that's for sure. I would also just expand it just because I don't want to have the exact same answer as you. That's so boring. I would expand it to the way that they bring energy to a room. Right. Like I want energy increasers. Or like, you, like the way I would describe you. You are like that dimmer. Like, your dimmer is always turned up, like, to the brightest in, like, all the rooms that you walk into. Like, I want to be. I want to be around people who. Who are also looking to increase the light in every room that they walk into. God, that was a good metaphor. I just made that up.

[A]

Really good. I would be your dimmer forever. Yes, yes, yes, yes.

[B]

So I think that that's good. What's another question?

[A]

Okay, I, I, I reach out to my kids.

[B]

Wait, can you, can you tell me how you asked them? What was the question?

[A]

Oh, yeah, Wait, I'm gonna have to put my glasses on for that one second. Okay. So I reached out to my kids and this morning, like, an hour ago, and I said, hi, cuties. For podcast. We're doing an episode every month where we take people's questions from the party people. We wanted to start first with any burning questions you may have. Can you send. Can you each. Because this was to both of them, send a question in for us, for me and Abigail. Before. Before X time, if possible.

[B]

Wow. You even gave a deadline. Nice.

[A]

And one is at school. Of course both of them are at school. Izzy was going to practice because school hasn't started yet at Oregon. Izzy was going to practice, and Declan, who is a sophomore in high school, goes, bro. Bro. That's so much pressure. I'm in school right now. I said, bro, Pressure is a privilege.

[B]

Yes.

[A]

Just ask the Kinger. All right, so. And this will give you an indication of my kids versus your kids. I know these questions. Okay, so Declan's question was. He came through under pressure. Declan's question is, who would win in ping pong?

[B]

Oh, yes. See, this is my kind of. Though I love this question.

[A]

Full, full disclosure and a little transparency. My family is obsessed with ping pong. We got an outdoor table that we put on our back patio, and we play ping pong screaming into the night. Way too much. And I get way too competitive, so. And I just want to say that I think I'm the champion of the family right now.

[B]

Wow.

[A]

Yeah. Ian would fight with me on that one, but I think. I think that's the case.

[B]

Okay. I love this very much. Thank you, Declan, for this perfect question. I am looking at the ping pong table at my house right now.

[A]

Oh, stop it. Yes.

[B]

And I will say live pod.

[A]

Yes over ping pong.

[B]

That would be so annoying to listen to.

[A]

Are you good?

[B]

I'm average. I'll be honest.

[A]

Okay.

[B]

I don't have. I. I don't have the. The agility to get side to side like I once did. My left ankle is shot, and so I play pretty still. You know, I just try to move my arm, and I just don't have enough reach. So I'm gonna.

[A]

I gotta move you. I'm gonna move you.

[B]

Yeah, I'm gonna. I'm gonna give this one to you, Jules. I. I don't. It usually stays on. It stays like it is right now. Where it's like. It's like this. It's not. It's not lay down. So I'm gonna give this one to.

[A]

You, Declan, I think we're gonna fire that table up.

[B]

But I. I am. I'm up for a challenge. Like, maybe invite me over to your house and I will whoop your kids asses on that ping pong table.

[A]

Whoop your ass. Okay, what else you got?

[B]

Okay, so Tish.

[A]

Party people.

[B]

Yeah, that was Tish's amma's. She's also a senior in high school. She said, oh, I thought of one. Just out like ten minutes later. Oh, I thought of one. What did. What does happiness mean to you? Like, everyone has a different interpretation of the word happiness. And when you think of the best possible life and future for yourself, what does that consist of? And then she wrote, wait, those are two different questions, but also kind of not. So I'll. I'll answer this first.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

What does happiness mean? I think Glenn and I have been doing a lot of, like, a lot of communicating, a lot of thinking about this word. And we think that happiness is the wrong word to be focused on. We. We know in our life experience, with all the things that have happened in our lives, that, like, chasing happiness is like, it's. It's a never ending, never completed adventure. Right? But I think people try to chase, like a forever state of happiness of. Of living at like, this high. Like, I am happy all the time. Like, there is no such thing as happy all the time. Right? So we chase moments of happiness. That's what we like to call it. And that we've been deeply in discussion of trying to define what enough means to us. So much of our life. You can get on the rat wheel of just churning and churning and churning, and then you get to the end of your life and you're like.

[A]

Why.

[B]

Did I spend so much. Yeah, why did I spend so much time thinking that way? And so defining what enough is, is actually a really big source of happiness for us right now. And yeah, you make plans, you try to live a good life, but happiness is not my North Star. It is. It is a byproduct of contentment, I think, of. Of really building a solid life. What about you, Jules?

[A]

What's your introduction? It's kind of like. It's kind of like the discussion we have with youth sports of, like, it's not a. It's not an outcome you're constantly seeking. Right. It's the process. It's the journey of it for. So I love that so much because when I think about what brings me happiness, rather than the things that bring me happiness are when I'm with my community and I think of this party people community we're seeking to build. Like, that's so important to us because when I'm with my gals and my friends or former teammates and, and you, there's joy, there's laughter, there's. There's happiness in a sense that, okay, this, this is important to me is to have that community in my life.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

And so the way I've worked that out without really thinking about it, but that it just comes to me is that, like, my workouts I don't do. I do a class. Right. But mostly my classes are with friends, like outside. And, you know, I'm playing beach volleyball and I'm playing pickleball, or I'm playing, you know, working out with a group on weekends called Body by Lauren bbl, also Brazilian Butt lift, because I want that one day. So we call ourselves bbls. That's amazing. And it's a group of women that work out and we do these little circuit trainings every, you know, weekend and with our dogs. And so I think that community is, Is really important. But what you said is so spot on, is figuring out, right. And getting off that hamster, Hamster wheel of the treadmill of like, what. What am I seeking in life and what is it?

[B]

I think it is one of the most important questions we can ask ourselves, like, what is. Is really the enoughness that I'm searching for? Because otherwise you're just like, not mindfully walking through your life in a way that when you do get to your last moment, you probably will have some regrets. Right? Like, I want to surround myself with, with my community, with the, The. The kind of people that light me up, that bring me. That bring me energy, that bring me joy. I want, Want to do good in the world. Like, doing this podcast for me and trying to build this community of party people and other folks who love sports and love women's sports more specifically and.

[A]

Want to do good in the world, which is so important to us.

[B]

Yes. Yeah. And, like, that's what gives me the feeling of enoughness. It's not like, how much money I can cure can I can have in my bank account or how many what kind of cars or what where do you know? Like, all of that stuff is completely irrelevant. So. Yeah. Okay, cool. I like that we are pretty much aligned there, and I like that you really are intentional about creating community in the ways of. Of your play. Like, because we can, we can say working out, you know, is a, Is a, Is a thing we do so that we can stay healthy But I actually hear you say, I go and play things. And by virtue of playing things, I'm actually getting workouts. And that's really cool. I like that. I'm gonna. I'm gonna start thinking about. I am playing beach. Beach volleyball now more. Did you know that?

[A]

Yeah, I know. I didn't know it today. I know. I'm so excited.

[B]

You got me into it. Thank you, Trudy.

[A]

Someone said to me the other day when I said, how was your workout? And they said, over, thank goodness. And I thought, oh, that's funny, because I never think that way. I'm like, I get to work out with all these people. So if you are feeling like, oh, I'm so thankful that workout is over, then maybe shift it up a little bit, right? Find some people that make it fun. Like, I can't go run on my own anymore, because I can still run a little bit, but I don't never want to run on my own because that's just painful. So I go and run with people, and we talk the whole time, and then you don't think about it. So, so good.

[B]

It's so smart. It's a great way.

[A]

It's fall time, baby. Let's go. I am so happy. Not for the leaves changing color, because we don't get that in California, unfortunately. I get it. East coast and Midwest people, you get these beautiful trees. We don't get that. We get cooler temperatures. And that I'm ready for. I am all for that. And on top of that, we get all these amazing sports on tv. So right now, we've got WNBA playoffs happening. We've got the last month of NWSL of the season happening, where they're vying to get into the playoffs. Angel City, let's go. We've got women's rugby World cup happening. Going to the finals. England is hosting. They're actually playing Canada in the final. And just like our favorite teams need the right gear to play in, I've decided that it's fall. My wardrobe also deserves a seasonal upgrade. What about you?

[B]

Oh, that's so good. That's why I know. And that's why I'm all about quints right now, baby. They've got the elevated fall essentials. 100% Mongolian cashmere, starting at just 50 bucks, y'. All Perfectly tailored denim, all at prices that just feel like a total win.

[A]

I personally have been eyeing their wool coats because I need them in the fall when we're calling games and it's outside, it's very chilly. It's cold. Yeah, it gets cold, right? And they've got this designer look at just a fraction of the cost. Which is what I love about Quint is that they. Here's. This is really cool. They work directly with ethical top tier factories and they cut out the middleman. Kind of like us, what we're doing, we want to cut out the middleman. So we think that is really smart. Cut out the middleman. And I've decided my quince MVP for the fall is the wool cocoon coat. Check it out. Abs for those chilly nights because you have to stand on the field and it gets really cold and sometimes they wear fuzzy gloves. I haven't checked out if they have fuzzy gloves yet, but it gets cold. I'm wearing the wool cocoon coat. It is so it's. It's got this high collar. It. It looks very fashionable.

[B]

Jules, do you want to hear what my MVP is?

[A]

Yeah. What's yours?

[B]

It's a European linen duvet cover set.

[A]

Duvet cover set.

[B]

Nice. Yeah. I mean, look, I had to. I had to outfit our child's dorm room. And so that's what we got her. And coziness is that is her most important thing that she was looking for.

[A]

Yes. And they should get that for Izzy.

[B]

So if you want to stay classic, cozy and ready for fall on and off the field, head to quint.com welcome to the party. For free shipping and 365 day returns. That's Q-U I N C E dot com. Welcome to the party.

[A]

All right, party people. Abs. When you think of game day party, you might not think of Wayfair, but. And all you party people out there, you honestly should. Because Wayfair is the best kept secret. Secret for incredible and mind you, affordable game day finds. And you could be setting up a tailgate. You could be hosting an indoor watch party. Doesn't matter. You need the right furniture. You need the right seating. You don't want people with like paper plates on their lap eating right. Like that's like a host fail abs.

[B]

You gotta get like disaster waiting to happen.

[A]

Yeah. Yeah. And then it's all over the floor. It's not good. My dog Swaggy is right there in your face. Yeah, it's not good.

[B]

Well, for me, my big cozy sectional from Wayfair is for sure my favorite thing. Everyone piles on. Everyone's got a great view and nobody's stuck in a squeaky folding chair. I mean, add in a sturdy coffee table for all the wings and dips. Bonus, we're winning before kickoff.

[A]

Even starts hashtag winning. And here's the best part. Shopping at Wayfair is so easy. You can browse literally from your comfy style sectional that you just got, and you just keep adding to it. Right. Everything I've ordered has been delivered free, fast, hassle free, right to my door. I'm also big on outdoor furniture. FYI, at Wayfair, I get a lot of that, actually. And pots and all of it. They have all of it side little tables. It's really great. So if you want to host like a champ this season, because side tables also help with hosting, Wayfair's got your back. Wayfair is your trusted destination for all things game day, from coolers and grills to. To recliners and slow cookers. So shop, save, and score [e-mail] that's W A Y F A I R.com Wayfair every style, every home, every party. Okay, this again is another one that's going to show you the difference between our families. Izzy, my daughter at Oregon, got out of practice, and I said, it's not too late. Send it to me. And so she wrote. I love these questions. I'm just saying I'm not to Declan and Izzy. Your questions are great. Is, what's your favorite walk up song? I wanted to love you too. I was like, yes. Okay.

[B]

Okay. So White Stripes or Eminem? Oh, so you know that.

[A]

I love that.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

At Euros the whole summer and they play that and they played at an Oregon football. I was like, let's go.

[B]

Oh, yes, yes, yes. What's yours?

[A]

Wait, what was the other one you.

[B]

Said an Eminem song. Lose yourself know.

[A]

Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. This is so silly. People are going to make fun of me for this. But as you know, I'm a huge Indigo Girls fan and grew up in college and like the national team loved them. We would go seek them out wherever they were. So for a long time, one of my pop up songs, I don't know if it would be a walkout song, but it's a pump up song. Was watershed, which isn't like you're closer to fine, you know, it's not like you're. Everyone knows it wasn't in the Barbie movie for sure, but it's. It. It talks about, you know, up on a watershed, standing in the fork of the road. You can stand there and agonize till your agony's your heaviest love. You know, Emily and Amy. So you're going to get clearance for this. But yes, like that. Like the the lyrics to that song are so good. So that was always Jules.

[B]

We're not in any jeopardy of copyright infringement with what just happened. Let's just be clear, because on espn, what that was was not copyright infringement.

[A]

In espn, whenever I would sing, they'd be like, you. They get in my ear. You can't sing. We're gonna have to pay $20,000 for five more seconds of that. And I'd be like, it doesn't matter. I'.

[B]

That is crazy. Even. Even our voices. That have nothing to do with it.

[A]

Yes.

[B]

Oh, my God.

[A]

Because I would sing all the time, and they would. Not on the podcast, but on. When you're on live television, maybe it's a different story. When you're on live television, they did not like me singing. They're like, no singing. I was like, oh, buzz kill. So.

[B]

Well, you know, I love a good Indigo Girl song. Like, Indigo Girls are my. They're my. They're my favorite band probably of all time. Growing up. It was the first time. I like. They're just the best. And they're actually, like, really incredible human beings, too.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

So, yeah, I love that. All right, I've got a Chase question. Our eldest. Our eldest son, he asked this question this morning as well, and he's so gentle and lovely. Like, he's just this. I just like, I love our kids so much. Chase says maybe you could ask each other about a public figure who has nothing to do with sports but still influenced your athletic careers.

[A]

Interesting.

[B]

And I swear to you, like, you know, when you get. Sometimes you get asked certain questions, you're like, yeah, I have no idea.

[A]

Yeah, okay. Oh, dang. Okay, you go first because you've been able to think about that. A public figure whose influence our sports career. Okay, Mine. I just came to me. Mine Is going to blow your mind.

[B]

It's funny, because a lot of the public. Your mind. Oh, my gosh. Well, you go, because I can't think of anything right this second.

[A]

Okay. Well, the only one. I was thinking, like, that's influenced my career, who gave me a chance to play as many sports as I wanted to play, gave me a chance to play sports in college. And that's the one who signed Title 9 into law, which. Do you know what president that was? This is what's going to blow your mind. No, title nine, of course, being the 37 words that have transformed women's sports in this country. Which president? It was Nixon.

[B]

Shut the front door. How is that even real? How do I not know that? That's like Such a. That's a big, important statistic for me to know. Maybe we're like, we don't talk about that.

[A]

Yeah, we don't talk about. We talk about, like, Senator Birch Bayh and Patsy Mink, Congresswoman Patsy Mink and the ones who were really the architects of the law, but President Nixon signed it actually into law.

[B]

Okay.

[A]

I could be wrong on that. I probably am, but I'm sticking with it. Okay.

[B]

Had the biggest influence on my athletic careers. Okay. So public figure this could be a sports person. I guess the question is pretty written vaguely, which I like. So I'm going to take some allegiances here. You know, growing up, I didn't have a lot of, like. And Jules, you. You. You will agree, I think, with this, like, there weren't women to watch. But I think. And what gets lost in, like, pay equity and, you know, women fighting for what we deserve and what we've earned over the years is that there have been so many incredible male athletes that have pushed the boundaries of the partnerships between corporate America and athletic leagues and them personally. And then you all really. And obviously, Billy steps to the plate and steps into the power and the leadership positions to, like, help really change things for people like me. So I'm gonna say that, first of all, like, you all, like, the 99 women's team are people that absolutely 100 shaped my career, like, in a very direct way. And then I think indirectly, I will have to say Billy, because she shaped all of women's sports indirectly with her actions as a tennis player and obviously directly with her interactions as a person beyond her career as a tennis player. I think that she's probably the single most important thing that ever happened to women's sports, period. Not everybody, especially at the time, wanted to fight for equality, you know, like, and it took the. The courage and the competitiveness.

[A]

Oh, yeah, that's a huge part of it, too, actually. It's a great point. Like, she. We were talking about in our first episode, she was like, how do we get to be number one in podcasting? She's feisty. Straight out of the womb feisty. There's no question like that. And she's still. I say to Alana, her wife, all the time, like, how does Billie have the energy to keep doing this?

[B]

I don't know.

[A]

And she goes. She goes, oh, my God, Julie. She wakes up. I'm sorry. She goes, oh, my gosh, Julie. She goes to bed excited about tomorrow and what she can change and what things she can do. And I was like, wow, that's exhausting. I get excited about my coffee in the morning. I like when I go to bed, I'm like, I can't wait for my coffee.

[B]

I know, I can't wait.

[A]

But she literally goes to bed, like, excited about what she's going to, you know, what good she's going to put out into the world. And that is absolutely Billy. I would have said Billy had I not been following the rules entirely of the questions. Instead, I had to say President Nixon.

[B]

Look, I love that you're such a rule follower that you, like, really didn't want to mess with Chase's question.

[A]

But, like, so classic is. I am so not a rule follower. Okay, one last one from.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

And then I want one from you. My sister, right. She sent a lot, so I have to. I have to look through them. Oh, this is a good one.

[B]

This is a good one.

[A]

Okay, this is from Chrissy. Kristen Schmidt. Kristin Foudey Schmidt. I call her Kay Foudy. This is from Kay Foudy, who's the best sister ever. One rule in your sport you wish you could change forever. And why.

[B]

Oh, my God. This is an incredible question.

[A]

I know. What is it? What is it?

[B]

Okay. Would we get rid of the throw ins? Would we get rid of penalty kicks? Would we get rid of. Oh, my gosh.

[A]

I have a friend that would love you so much, Ellie. I play volleyball with her and she's always like, how can we get rid of penalty kicks?

[B]

Oh, Glennon. She's like, this is inhumane behaviors. This is inhumane. Why would we put people in this kind of position of pressure?

[A]

Right. How dare them? Okay, you think on it. Here's my one rule change which will make a lot of sense because you know me best as a player. I would like the goals to be twice as big so I could actually score. I mean, I feel like they're tiny and the goalkeepers, they're just getting taller and more athletic. Like, make them big. Like, lots of goals.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Big goals. I could shoot every time I'd shoot, it would be like, you know, five yards over. If it was twice the size, it would be upper corner.

[B]

Yes. Here's the thing, Jules, though, like, what we then just need to probably do is just make the goals worth six points like they do in American football.

[A]

Yeah, true.

[B]

Because, like, basketball could have a three point line. Yes. Do something that if it's like outside the box.

[A]

Yes.

[B]

You get two goals.

[A]

You get two goals if you're outside.

[B]

The box talks or if it's off, like, and double goals. If it's off like a one touch, direct volley or header finish, you get three goals. Because those are rare.

[A]

Right.

[B]

You know, like I was. I would have scored goals. Exactly. I would have scored 1 million goals because of my header head. That's my rule. Change. Change the numbers. Because I also think that people don't realize that, like, football scoring things are like, the games are like three to two. Yeah, two to one.

[A]

Yeah, exactly.

[B]

Oh, no, it's 14 to seven.

[A]

It's 14. Eight to 21.

[B]

Exactly.

[A]

It's six to two. Six to three. I didn't do my math right there, but you get it.

[B]

All we really want, truly, all we dream about and think about is comfortable clothes. Right, Julie? I don't think people understand that. And at the end of the day, that's kind of priority number one for me.

[A]

It's kind of the only priority. Priority number one through 1000.

[B]

Looking cute too, but like, it's great, but it's not really the, like, the comfy clothes that I have for me is. It's the most important thing in my day to day rotation.

[A]

Okay. Do you have there Vuori's dream knit performance jogger?

[B]

Yes.

[A]

Okay. Because I have it in like seven different colors and where do I even begin? Because one, it's lightweight, one you can wear to yoga. You could wear it running. You could wear it to beach volleyball. Yes. I play a lot of that. Right. The fabric. I know. You're a fabric gal.

[B]

Yes.

[A]

Abs feels like butter. Ah. And so I mean. And then I end up what I just end up doing. Because I think showering is overrated. You just stay in it all day. You stay in it all day and you. It could even be your pajamas. It's that soft.

[B]

I think that that's hilarious. I usually shower and then get into another pair of Yori sweats. So that's like.

[A]

That's my. I know.

[B]

All right. But Vori is an investment in your happiness for sure. And for our listeners, they are offering 20 off your first purchase. Get yourself some of the most comfortable and versatile clothing on the [e-mail] welcome to the party. That's V U o r I v.com welcome to the party. Exclusions apply. Visit the website for full terms and conditions.

[A]

Not only will you receive 20% off your first purchase, but you get free shipping on any US orders over $75. And I like this because maybe it doesn't work out in the first go. You get free returns. So go to vuori.com welcome to the party and discover the versatility of Vuori clothing exclusions apply. Visit the website for full terms and conditions. What is your last question?

[B]

Okay, this is from Glennon, and she's a writer, so I actually haven't even read through this. Julie, this is to you.

[A]

Oh, this is. She directed them. Oh, okay.

[B]

So many payoffs for your commitment to soccer greatness. What were the costs? What might have you done? What might you have done, pursued, developed, if you hadn't pursued soccer greatness with such tenacity? And then she also asks, also, pretend you're the main character in the movie of her life and the whole world is watching now, what is the one thing that the crowd is screaming at you to do right now? Got that from a real. Can't take credit.

[A]

Love you so good.

[B]

I love that. Like, pretend you're the main character.

[A]

And what are they screaming? Got that from a real.

[B]

And what are they screaming for you to do? Like, don't do that. Don't go down in the basement. The dark basement. Or do that. Keep going.

[A]

Okay. If I was the main character in a movie. What? I think they're screaming. The world is screaming at us right now. We're going to be both main characters in this movie.

[B]

Okay.

[A]

Okay. Is that. The world needs some hope. Holy shit. They're screaming. Give us some hope. So that is another reason why we felt this podcast was so important. And who knows how we're going to do with that directive? And I hope we do great with it, but that is our North Star in so much of what we do in building out this podcast. Yes, we're gonna educate and we're gonna celebrate, but we're also gonna bring light and fun and hope and a little levity to the situation. Cause I do think the world needs that.

[B]

Yeah. I think it's so important that with all of the things that are going on and all of the stress and at our age, Jules. It's a. A little slice of even more interesting hell with what my wife Glennon, calls the. The Venn diagram, the intersection of. Of menopause and fascism. Yeah. It's a special slice of hell that we're going through. And then we have aging parents. Then we also have kids that are leaving and nesting like our kids. Like, this is happening to us at the exact same time, which is so weird. So, like, all of these things are happening to us. There's so much. And I honestly, like, when we started to do this, I was like, this is going to bring joy to my life. Yeah. It's going to be work and we're going to figure out how to do this in, like, the. The best, most funnest way. But this is where joy can live. Like, if we keep going and watching women's sporting events. I really do experience joy and hope there. So, yes, I'm going to, like, retweet your answer, for sure. And Glennon will. She would. She would kill me if I didn't mention the fact that, like, it's good. It's interesting, I guess, that you just kind of passed over her first question of, like, if you hadn't pursued soccer with such great tenacity, what would you have done? What other things do you think?

[A]

I would have been a doctor. And God help us all if that was the case. I was going to med school, Abs. What?

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

I got into Stanford med school after doing undergrad there, and I defied.

[B]

Are you kidding me?

[A]

Yes. And let's just say the universe took care of me because no one would have trusted me as a doctor. Aha.

[B]

Lies.

[A]

Lies. So. And I've watched the slog that. I mean, I have so much respect for MDs and PhDs and all that they do, but it's a lot of work. So it's a slog, and they go in early, and it's. It's a lot. I, I, I. Needless to say, I'm very happy that I didn't go down that path, but I would have gone down that path for sure.

[B]

You chose wisely.

[A]

Yeah. I felt like, oh, that's what you should do. Right? If you get into Stanford Medical School, you should do med school. It was actually my mom, who was a nurse, who was like, are you sure you want to do this? I'm in a hospital all the time, and there's not many happy doctors out there. You don't feel like this is your kind of vibe? I was like, oh, okay, Jules, that's incredible.

[B]

I didn't know that you got into medical school, first of all. And second of all, that is a difficult thing to turn down. Right?

[A]

Like, yeah.

[B]

To get into, like, a place like Stanford Medical School, nobody turns that down. And that's, like, fighting for the joy. Like, you.

[A]

You.

[B]

This is why you are a joy Hunter, is because you've been doing it all along, even when there were these great opportunities that, like, fell in your lap or that you earned, obviously.

[A]

And how many parents to give Slim Jim and Fruity Judy another little round of applause? Like, how many parents would have said, yeah, go do something else? I mean, a lot of parents. I mean, I think of myself in that situation as a parent, if my kid got into a really good med school and they were like, I don't.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

I think I might have been like, oh, are you sure you should?

[B]

Yeah. Especially because, like, what you were going into over here on the women's national.

[A]

Team, there's no pain, there's no money. There was nothing. And it wasn't a soccer decision. It was a life decision. It was like, I don't. People think, oh, you stay. You didn't do med school because of soccer. No, I didn't do med school because it wasn't what I wanted in my life. I knew that there was more joy happening on the soccer side, but it wasn't because of soccer, because we surely weren't making any money doing that. But. Yeah. Oh, this is fun.

[B]

Okay, good. It is fun.

[A]

Wait, what was Glennon's question for you? Did she have one?

[B]

She didn't.

[A]

She didn't.

[B]

She didn't. It was the. Pretend you're the main character.

[A]

Oh, yeah. What would you. What would you have screamed out? What would have been your directive?

[B]

I think that what I would say right now is that. That keep going. Like, you know when you're watching a show and, like, they're. They're walking down into the basement and. And you're like, don't go do that. Don't do that. Like, I think that. I think that what the people are screaming is, like, keep doing whatever it is you can do. Because here's the other thing. Like, where we're at, like, the way that I see, the way that I envision the world is like, we're not going to get everything right all the time, but I'm just going to, like, keep throwing stuff at the wall and see what feels right and what. What sticks in a way, because, you know, I. I want to keep putting myself into the world. It is a way that I know it is a thing that I can do with. With good boundaries in place so that I'm not, like, always on my social media or worrying so much about what the world thinks of me. It's like, I just want to make the world a little bit better than when I found it. And that is, like, my focus and mission, and that is part of what brings me joy every single day is like, did I do the things that I came here to do? Because I do think that that is part of my plan or the path that I'm on down here in Earth school. I'm here to, like, inject joy when I can try to do some fun things while I'm down here, right? And, like, that's what this is about. Like, I've been away from sport for the last 10 years, and I want to get back into. To really, like, diving back into women's sports and watching it more consistently and being in the community of it and building community. Because, honestly, it's like, the only place. It's one of the only places that I feel real hope these days. And so that's what I'm like, okay, I'm gonna orient this ship towards hope. And that's what we're doing. And that's why welcome to the party. It means so much to me. It means so much to you, Jules. I know. I know. It means a lot to Billy. It's just gonna be a fun little ride we go on. Who knows what the hell happens here? But we're going on this ride.

[A]

Guess what? We're gonna keep going. Because that's your directive. Keep going. And it's such a good one, because sometimes you're like, I don't know if I want to keep going into that dark room to the basement right now especially. But, like, yes, keep going. And we did this one as a special Give the power to the Party people episode to just lay the foundation of what this could look like. And we have no idea what any of this is going to look like. We're just building it as we fly. But that's right, the whole idea and premise behind it, of course, course, is that it is something that is yours and we definitely want to hear, which is why we created our email for you. Or you can do it on social in the new age way of just actually putting it out on comments on Instagram or Tick Tock. But it's party people questions gmail.com, so send them in. And we're going to try and do it about once a month and we'll see how it goes in terms of if you guys love it or hate it or want more or don't. But we will respond to all of it. So make sure you put them in there. And also, while you're at it, if you would be so kind as subscribing to our welcome to the party YouTube channel, which is welcome to the party show. It's elcometothepparty show on YouTube. And don't forget that little bell icon.

[B]

And also, just please, if you have like a. A minute of your time, we'd just appreciate it, if you haven't already, as we build this community out to rate, review, and subscribe to the podcast on Apple Podcasts or Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts. It really actually does matter to us. It makes a big difference in letting us know how you feel about us. Giving us some feedback. Julie and I, we can take some. Some critical feedback. We can handle it, right?

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

And then also be sure to follow us on TikTok and Instagram. Elcometotheparty show. That's where Julie, Billie, and I will bring the party straight to your feed. Jules. Boom. Do you want to do the USA Today? I think you should.

[A]

Okay. Should we just remind the party people that this was our cheer? If you didn't see the first episode, this was our cheer that we do with the U.S. women's National Team. Because in Europe, they called us from the very beginning. This was our cheer. They didn't say usa. They said usa. So. And it's got to be from the soul. From the soul. The last bit you're gonna say, and that's the bit from the soul. Okay, Are you ready? Pause in.

[B]

I am.

[A]

On three. One, two, three. Usa. Usa.

[B]

Usa. Usa. All right, party people, we'll see you next time. Thanks for coming. Welcome to the Party is an independent production brought to you by Treat Media. Treat Media makes art for humans who want to stay human forever. Dog is our production partner, and you can watch our full conversations on the welcome to the party YouTube channel and follow us at welcome to the Party show on Instagram and TikTok.