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She's only 26 years old.
By Samantha Maffucci — Written on Jun 14, 2019
The 2019 FIFA Women’s World Cup has already kicked off, with the U.S. Women's National Soccer Team beating Thailand in a stunning 13-0 game. The World Cup will occur from June 11th to 20th, and includes 24 teams, with the U.S., Chile, Sweden and Thailand in group F.
And so far, the U.S. team has been kicking major butt. In fact, they are the most successful team in international women’s soccer; they’ve won three Women’s World Cup titles and four Olympic gold medals.
With their recent lawsuit against the U.S. Soccer Federation for unequal pay, the team has been in the headlines lately. And if they win the entire tournament, it’s all the more reason for them to deserve equal pay compared to their male counterpart team, who isn’t nearly as successful.
Following the team means getting to know its players. What do we know about their individual personalities, on and off the field? Who is Morgan Brian? Here are 5 things to know about the midfielder for the U.S. Women's National Soccer Team.
1. She’s from a small town.
According to her bio, Brian grew up on St. Simon’s Island in Georgia, an island that’s just three miles wide. She started practicing soccer in her driveway and had to play several older age groups due to the population. “I was nine, and we were playing with kids that were 14. I hadn’t grown yet,” she recalls.
She also played pickup soccer, in which anyone can join without needing skills. Brian says it “influenced her connective style,” and that she would play it in high school, competing with boys. She even met her now-husband playing pickup!
2. She got her start at an early age.
Though she's been playing soccer since she was young, she had a hard time starting her career. She tried out for the Florida State ODP team, and didn’t make any of the rosters. According to Brian, “My club coach was like, ‘You can either pout about it or use it as motivation and in retrospect, it was the best thing that ever happened to me.”
Her coach also made the players fill out a goal sheet, to which Brian wrote on hers “start for my club team." As Brian remembers, her coach pulled her aside and said, “What are you doing? You should put, ‘Be on the Women’s National Team’'.” She eventually made the state, regional, and national ODP teams.
3. She’s had quite the career.
In her collegiate career on the University of Virginia Cavaliers from 2011 to 2014, Brian was the second-leading scorer for the team in her first year. She was named Soccer America Player of the Year in her junior year, and won the Hermann Trophy twice in 2013 and 2014.
From 2015 to 2017, she played on Houston Fash, making 17 appearances total. In 2016, Brian made the list of the allocated players for the U.S. Women’s National Team, and joined before the 2016 Summer Olympics.
She currently plays midfielder for the Chicago Red Stars of the National Women’s Soccer League, as well as on the U.S. Women's National Soccer Team. In the 2015 FIFA Women’s World Cup, she represented the U.S., and was 22 years old at the time, becoming the youngest member of the team at the World Cup.
4. She’s suffered a number of injuries during her career.
During the 2017 SheBelieves Cup, Morgan suffered a minor knee injury, causing her to miss friendly games against Russia, Sweden, and Norway. She spent the remainder of the year in training camps and as subs on the field.
As the 2018 season started, she returned for the 2018 SheBelieves Cup, used as a starter for the rest of the year. She also suffered a head injury at the 2018 CONCACAF Women’s Championship and was forced to leave the match.
Over the past several years, she’s also had back, groin, and hamstring injuries, in addition to an unknown medical issue.
Her club coach, Rory Dames, said, “She has had an issue for quite some time and nobody’s been able to pinpoint what that is. She’s had tests done, she’s had scans, she’s had MRIs and nobody’s been able to find anything conclusive. But I don’t think anybody doesn’t believe that something’s not wrong. Nobody is more frustrated about the last two years of Morgan’s career than Morgan.”
5. She’s married to another soccer player.
In November 2017, Morgan tied the knot with soccer player Fabrice Gautrat. Her teammates, including Kelley O'Hara, Becky Sauerbrunn, Emily Sonnett, and Sam Mewis, all attended the wedding. Before her relationship with Gautrat, she dated soccer player Eric Bird for two years.
Samantha Maffucci is an editor for YourTango who focuses on writing trending news and entertainment pieces. In her free time, you can find her obsessing about cats, wine, and all things Vanderpump Rules.