USWNT Highlight Mental Health at Women’s World Cup

The Women’s World Cup 2023 has kicked off in Australia and New Zealand, and according to The Guardian, USWNT players Sophia Smith and Naomi Girma say they are very much thinking of their late college teammate, Katie Meyer, who died by suicide last year.

Meyer, who in 2019 led the Stanford team to a national title in a dramatic shootout, took her life when she was 22 years old. To honor Meyer, this week Girma wrote a tribute to Meyer in The Players Tribune, calling her the “truest friend I ever had. The most unapologetic, positive, caring person in the world. The first person to be open and talk about her feelings. The first person you’d turn to when you needed to talk about yours. And the last person you’d think would take her own life.”

And to honor her memory, Girma and her teammates are partnering with the nonprofit Common Goal to draw attention to mental health during the World Cup. In a video they created to discuss the issue of mental health, they emphasize, “We want to demonstrate that vulnerability is a sign of strength.”

“It’s long overdue that our soccer communities put mental health at the forefront when we discuss player care,” said Lilli Barrett-O’Keefe, Executive Director of Common Goal USA. “We are determined to create a culture shift, at all levels of the game, following this summer’s World Cup. We are grateful for the players that are pushing this narrative forward and holding us all accountable to not only talk but act.”

“We don’t want this to end simply at awareness,” said Girma. “We want to make sure that young people have the tools to cope with depression, anxiety, stress, and the very bad days, when it feels like the weight of the world is on their shoulders, and it can never get better.”

Teammate Sophia Smith also talked about how Meyer’s death still affects her, and how she is taking proactive steps to protect her own mental health.

“For me, deleting Twitter, the best thing I’ve ever done,” Smith said. “No idea what’s happening. But I think just kind of balancing; we did all these shoots and partnerships and stuff months ago, and it’s all coming out now, and it’s a lot and it’s like something new every day. So trying to just push that aside and focus on what we are here to do, and that’s to play soccer in one World Cup, and just finding that balance I think is super important.”

If you are at a low moment or struggling with thoughts of suicide, call or text 988 to reach the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline. A trained counselor will help you get the support you need.

Read the full article here.

Read Girma’s moving tribute to her teammate and best friend.

Or watch the team’s video: