OL Reign Re-Signs Forward Megan Rapinoe Through 2023 Season

OL Reign has re-signed original OL Reign player Megan Rapinoe through the 2023 NWSL season, exactly 10 years to the day after she was first allocated to the Reign in 2013, the club announced today. Per league and club policy, the financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.

“I’m back, Seattle! This club means the world to me, and I’m fully committed to helping this team to the best of my ability,” said forward Megan Rapinoe. “Under Laura’s leadership and surrounded by this level of talent and quality, I’m confident we will continue to raise the bar and set the standard for success beyond the sport.”

The global icon and combined six-time NWSL Best XI First Team and Second Team selection is returning to the Reign for an 11th consecutive season. Joining teammates Lu Barnes and Jess Fishlock, the 37-year-old is just one of 10 players to make at least one appearance in every NWSL season and is one of just five players to have been with the same club every year since 2013.

“We have the three Reign originals once again! Pinoe is a world-class player who has been and is a trailblazer for this sport and this league,” said general manager Nick Perera. “I’m elated to bring back her leadership and experience into our locker room and community.”

This past season, Rapinoe set a club record for most consecutive games with either a goal or assist (seven games) and finished the season with seven goals and four assists, tied for the most on the Reign in both categories, respectively. Rapinoe was tied for fifth in the league in combined goals and assists with 11. The forward appeared in 14 games (nine starts) for 931 total minutes in the 2022 regular season, registering 34 shots (15 on target), 40 corners, and 34 chances created. In the final match of the regular season, the forward’s 100th NWSL regular-season appearance, Rapinoe scored the opening goal to help lead the club to its third NWSL Shield.

The veteran’s 100 Reign appearances are the fourth most in club history, joining current teammates and Reign originals Lu Barnes (189) and Jess Fishlock (163) as one of four Reign players to reach the centennial milestone.

The Reign original was named to the 2022 Best XI Second Team at the end of the season after earning NWSL Player of the Month in August and selections for NWSL Best XI in August and September/October. Rapinoe has been named to either the Best XI First Team (2018) or Second Team (2013, 2015, 2017, 2019, 2022) in six seasons since the league’s inaugural season in 2013, tied for the third-most combined selections in league history.

A common name throughout the NWSL record book, Rapinoe has an untouchable resume of accomplishments, beginning with 47 regular-season goals, which is tied for sixth in the league all-time and most in Reign history. The forward has finished three seasons (2013, 2017, 2022) as the team leader in goals scored. The veteran leads the league in penalty-kick goals (12) and corner kicks (353) all-time and is tied for second in the league all-time in hat tricks (two) and braces (eight).

Along with being a league leader on the field, Rapinoe is commonly known for her ability to influence the world by being a force for change. In July, the Olympic gold medalist and two-time World Cup champion was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation’s highest civilian honor, becoming the first soccer player to receive the award and one of just six female athletes or coaches.

Additionally, the Redding, California native has been at the forefront of establishing equal pay for the United States Women’s National Team, which in February, resulted in the U.S. Soccer Federation agreeing to pay men and women equally in all exhibition games, or friendlies, and tournaments, ultimately changing the trajectory of all women’s sports as female athletes continue to fight for equal pay.

“Pinoe is here to stay! I think her performances last season truly showed everyone that she is one of the best players in the world,” said head coach Laura Harvey. “Her loyalty and commitment to this club is unreal. I am so pleased we get to work together again and push this club to even bigger heights.”