Korbin Albert should be having an amazing 2024.
The United States Women’s National Team (USWNT) midfielder, who plays professionally for Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) earned her first cap (appearance) for the National Team in December of 2023 before turning heads in this February’s CONCACAF W Gold Cup. Subsequently, she was named to the 18-man roster for the Olympics in Paris, where she appeared in five games, starting two, scored her first international goal (the deciding strike in group play against Australia), and assisted on the game-winning goal in the gold medal match against Brazil, helping her team secure its first gold medal since 2012.
So, yes, Albert should be having a 2024 to remember, a banner year.
Turns out, it will be a year the women’s soccer community, queer sports fans, and those who follow the USWNT will remember for entirely different reasons, as the 20-year old has a history of homophobic and transphobic social media activity.
Albert has been met with intense backlash from fans, getting booed in all matches on home soil since her viewpoints were made public this past March. Whether it was the 78th minute in Atlanta, the first game after the posts were released, Columbus, Ohio during the 74th minute the following week, or the 71st minute in Commerce City, Colorado an icy cold reception followed Albert wherever she went. This includes the final three games for the team before the Olympics, June and July friendlies in St. Paul Minnesota, Harrison, NJ, and Washington, D.C.
It was a reception that USWNT coach, Emma Hayes, said negatively impacted Albert, while addressing reporters after the Olympic roster was released in late June, noting that she “had a really, really tough time” and that “she’s really struggled.” The new manager, who came to the National Team after a wildly successful tenure at Chelsea FC also said that she “wants the fans to really embrace” Albert.
This focus - on the perceived harm caused to Albert - has dominated much of the discourse in the months since the posts were revealed, including in the aftermath of the story breaking where many opined on whether there should be a litmus test to play for the USWNT, if this was simply another instance of the squad focusing on off-the-field issues rather than what happens on it, and if it was fair to remove Albert from future rosters because of this behavior.
There shouldn’t be a litmus test for who gets to play on the USWNT based on religious or political beliefs, but there also never has been, as evident by the variety of individuals who have suited up for the squad since its 1985 inception.
But, what we are talking about here isn’t a religious or political belief. What we are talking about is the ability to view someone as a human being and what rights those individuals have. We are talking about personal safety, security, and feeling like you belong.
Prominent in these discussions have been the considerations of what is fair to Albert and her beliefs, but not what is fair to the people who make up the community she disparaged and demeaned.
Like teammate Tierna Davidson, one of only two out queer players the USWNT brought to Paris for the Olympics.
“It’s a difficult situation that has obviously affected me personally given what she was speaking on,” the defender said on Sarah Spain’s podcast Good Game with Sarah Spain. “I think it is something that you have to learn as a young player, especially with the platform you are given, your beliefs or how you choose to express certain things is very public and people do look and listen. Whether or not it is something that you grew up with, or it was instilled upon you from a young age and you might not know better, it is something that can hurt other people.
“I think she has gone through a lot of learning since then and she has to continue to do that, as we all do as humans, we have to learn from what we do in our lives and how people react to it and understand the hurt we can cause,” Davidson continued. “I think that it’s difficult, because as a team we have always wanted to be very welcoming to all of our fans, to all players that walk through the locker room, and so to have that in our space is very difficult.”
It isn’t just about Davidson, though. There’s also Quinn, the first nonbinary and transgender individual in the National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL) who competes internationally for Canada, and the 44 other LGBTQIA+ soccer players who competed in the 2024 Games.
Then there are the LGBTQIA+ coaches, trainers, broadcasters, analysts, and reporters, as well as the fans, of whom much has been written, discussed, and analyzed regarding the significance of LGBTQIA+ representation and visibility in women’s soccer.
What about the harm the discourse surrounding Albert - often presented as a vague “controversy” in the broadcasts leading up to and during the Olympics - has done to them? What about the closeted queer kid in high school or college, not sure if the sport is still a safe space for them or the not yet out pro player who isn’t sure if they will be welcomed by their teammates?
From @sandraherrera_ on X
Because the conversation surrounding Albert and the USWNT is bigger than the consequences Albert will or will not, should or should not face.
Last year saw the most anti-LGBTQIA+ legislation enacted than any other on record in the United States, coinciding with an increase in hate crimes and suicide rates, as well as over 500 bills introduced across the country targeting LGBTQIA+ individuals in 2024.
In soccer, we have also seen the impact, as a report released by FIFA detailed the prevalence of abuse during the 2023 Women’s World Cup, with 20-percent of the vitriol categorized as homophobic. It was also just late March when the U.S. men saw their Nations League contest against Mexico delayed due to homophobic chants from fans.
Homophobia is also not new to the rosters of the USWNT and NWSL, either, as Jaelene Daniels (nee Hinkle) repeatedly refused to participate in team Pride games or wear Pride jerseys, and Sydny Nasello never played in the NWSL after being drafted by the Portland Thorns due to her social media activity.
This issue goes beyond the pitch, however, as recently, Red Sox outfielder Jarren Duran was given a two-game suspension for yelling a homophobic slur at a fan. There have also been frequent instances of National Hockey League (NHL) and Major League Baseball (MLB) players refusing to participate in Pride Nights, including the NHL banning theme nights and rainbow tape before reversing their decision, and the viral graduation speech given by Kansas City kicker, Harrison Butker, where he called Pride Month a “deadly sin”. Notre Dame basketball player, Hannah Hidalgo has shared anti-LGBTQIA+ posts on social media, too, including one that called gay marriage a “sin”.
In other words, no matter where you look, queer people are under attack, and Albert is a part of that.
Women’s sports have a long history of marginalizing and rendering invisible the LGBTQIA+ community. This has been especially true in women’s soccer, where traditionally feminine and White players have often received more press, marketing, endorsement opportunities, and sponsorship than their queer and/or Black counterparts.
In fact, including the 2024 Games only nine out LGBQTIA+ players have appeared in a major tournament (either the World Cup or the Olympics) for the USWNT in three decades, with others coming out after their careers were over. There were only two out LGBTQIA+ players on the 2024 roster (including alternate, Jane Campbell) and three out LGBTQIA+ players appeared on the 2023 World Cup roster, after five were featured on the 2019 World Cup team.
Even though the experiences of queer women in soccer have often been erased, made less visible, or reconstructed in a more palatable manner for broad audiences, the sport has also been a space of belonging and community for the LGBTQIA+ community.
In part, that is due to the players themselves, their identities, and their activism.
In 2022, the team wore tape on their wrists with the phrase ‘Protect Trans Kids’ while competing in the SheBelieves Cup in Texas. A year later, Becky Sauerbrunn, former USWNT captain and stalwart at the center back position for over a decade wrote an op-ed in 2023 supporting trans participation in sport. Retired player Megan Rapinoe - who was the subject of one the social media posts Albert liked - has a long history of advocating and speaking out for the LGBTQIA+ community, including trans participation in sport.
From @mrapinoe on Instagram
And it was just this past April, shortly after Albert’s social media behavior surfaced, that the USWNT Player’s Association issued a statement declaring their support for LGBTQIA+ rights.
Some former and current players have spoken out about Albert, including Sam Mewis, Sauerbrunn, and Lynn Williams on multiple segments of The Women’s Game podcast they co-host. Christen Press and Tobin Heath have also addressed Albert various times on their podcast, The RE-CAP SHOW, while others like Rapinoe and Kristie Mewis have made statements on social media.
And ahead of the first match following the revelation, Alex Morgan and Lindsey Horan addressed the issue on a team media call, with Morgan stating, “We stand by maintaining a safe and respectful space, especially as allies and members of the LGBTQ+ community.
“This platform has given us an opportunity to highlight causes that matter to us, something that we never take for granted.”
But at times, the public statements have been lacking, disappointing, and at odds with the team’s long history of advocacy and activism.
In an interview with Vanity Fair, forward Trinity Rodman said of Albert, “Having strong opinions is difficult, especially when you are looked at a lot and you have a platform to do so. Obviously getting booed is horrible, but there’s people that have their opinions and have their beliefs and they’re not always going to match up with those. Even if you’re in the spotlight, it doesn’t mean you believe the same things as everybody else. But yeah, for us, she’s on the US women’s national team and we’re going to be her teammates and support her. When she comes on the field, she’s just like everybody else wearing that number and playing for our country, and she’s working her butt off to do so.”
Additionally, many players and coaches have insisted on referring to the matter as something the team would deal with internally, only bringing up more questions about the type of “work” Albert was undergoing, if any at all.
Albert’s apology itself, posted to Instagram, was deficient:
From @korbin.rose_ on Instagram
Maybe the women’s soccer community, queer people, and fans of the USWNT aren’t obligated to see the “work” those that surround Albert insist that she’s doing. Maybe that’s something a team usually known for its loud and proud activism - whether for equal pay, equity in women’s sports, racial justice, and, yes, LGBTQIA+ issues - has decided to change.
But if that’s the case, then maybe Albert doesn’t deserve the raucous cheers and accolades that come along with a gold medal and spot on America’s most high profile women’s sports team.
What the entire story does highlight is that LGBTQIA+ advocacy is still so desperately needed, especially at a time when queer people are consistently and constantly at risk, in both society and sport. An especially crucial advocacy considering the moment women’s sports are currently having. A moment reflected in record-setting viewership, ticket sales, revenue, media coverage, investment, and expansion.
Part of that moment needs to be acknowledging that with women’s sports comes the LGBTQIA+ community, whether as the participants competing, the fans cheering, or those in various facets of the sport industry.
If women’s sports are having a moment - something that is unequivocally true - then so, too, are the people that make up the women’s sports community.
And that includes queer people, whether Albert likes it or not.
Kate Harman is an Associate Teaching Professor in the Department of Communication Studies at Rowan University.