One hundred and twenty-three goals in 224 appearances for the US women’s national team. Two World Cup wins. A gold medal, a bronze medal, a three-time Olympian. A National Women’s Soccer League champion. A relentless advocate for the growth of the game. Alex Morgan retired from professional football this past weekend in San Diego, California as one of the most successful players ever to lace up her boots. She leaves a multifaceted legacy behind her. One of its greatest aspects is the excitement she uniquely inspired, and her ability to leverage it for broader growth.

In a decade when the popularity of women’s football skyrocketed globally, Morgan was often its key name. Stateside, every stadium Morgan played in drew enormous crowds. Up…

Welcome to Deadspin’s IDIOT OF THE MONTH. Please enjoy our latest offering to the pageview gods, presented thusly in a convenient slideshow format. Honorable Mention: Mark Kiszla credits: YouTube This strange man, purportedly a sports columnist, penned an ode to Nikola Jokić’s underwear. Great job, buddy. Honorable Mention: Jackson Mahomes source: AP What’s that saying? “If someone shows you they’re an irredeemable piece of shit, believe them”? Case in point, alleged sex criminal Jackson Mahomes. Honorable Mention: Micah Parsons source: AP Before you tweet, think about what’s happening around the NFL these days. Think really hard about it, particularly if you’re soliciting a massage therapist. C’mon. Honorable Mention: George Santos source: AP Jewish volleyball s…

When the Astros’ 2017 cheating scandal was exposed in 2019, team owner Jim Crane wanted to make sure everyone knew the championship wasn’t tainted. “Our opinion is that this didn’t impact the game,” Crane said. “We had a good team. We won the World Series and we’ll leave it at that.” Then-right fielder Josh Reddick chimed in with a similar sentiment: “I think it’s just a matter of, we’re still a good team and it wasn’t a necessary point of us winning. We still went out there and won ballgames on the road as well.” Essentially, this argument boils down to “We were such a good team. It was only a matter of time before we won. The cheating wasn’t necessary, it just expedited the process.” The team’s 2022 championship is evidence that both Crane and Reddic…

Someone recapped Game 4 of the Cubs-Giants NLDS to Cory Gearrin, then immediately took his photo: Photo: Jennifer Stewart/ [object Object] Dammit, Gerardo: Photo: Chris Coduto/ [object Object] Tyler Saladino’s mustache indicates that he’s here to do two things: Play ball, and kidnap dames then tie them to train tracks. Photo: Jamie Squire/ [object Object] Please, my son…he is very sick: Photo: Jamie Squire/ [object Object] Anthony Rizzo’s tablet was hacked: Photo: Jamie Squire/ [object Object] Bartolo watch: The 43-year-old is now on the Atlanta Braves, filling a spot on a roster of Guys You Knew Elsewhere that includes Matt Kemp, R.A. Dickey, Brandon Phillips, and Jaime Garcia. What a weird team. Photo: Matthew Stockman/ [object Object] Adam Lind’s goat is looking …

We love it when our name-inees display some competitive spirit, so we were thrilled to receive an email in that vein last night from Bulltron competitor Bernie Wagenblast. Here's what he had to say: I just learned I'm the #15 seed in the Bulltron Regional. I admit it's going to be tough to knock off Bufus, but I might just be the Cinderella name this year! In fact, if I was born a girl, my mom would have named me Cinderella Wagenblast, so that would be appropriate. 😉 As they say with the Oscars, it's just an honor to even be nominated. While we can't help but bemoan the chromosomal happenstance that robbed the world of a Cinderella Wagenblast, we take solace in the fact that Bernie's no slouch in the onomastic arena himself. But he's right: Topplin…

Get those bets in, because even though Wimbledon hasn't started yet, ESPN already knows who won. Doesn't matter if one of their projected winners isn't actually playing. Just trust them. TWWL is good like that. [ ESPN] Relatedus sports betting sitenew sports betting siteslegal betting appbest sportsbooks for live bettinglive streaming siteearly cash out …

David Hirshey writes regularly for Deadspin about soccer. Is it too early to gloat about England's failure to qualify for the World Cup? What's that you say? The draw for the 2010 World Cup qualifying was only announced yesterday? So technically no one has been eliminated yet. But really, now that they've proven themselves to be Euro trash, how can England possibly cope with the greatest country in the world, the number one exporter of potassium and prostitutes, the Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan, which has been drawn into the Three Lions' group. Wait, there is one way: Borat for England! Hey, not only would he throw the Jews down the well, he might also defenestrate the whole so-called Golden Generation of Beckham, Gerrard and Lampard that left Wembley on Wednesday …

data-mm-id=”_zlq1v1yry”>Kevin Love may be done in Cleveland. While the Cavaliers have said on multiple occasions that they want to keep him, they may not have a choice. Love looks like he is done with the franchise and things are becoming increasingly public. He looks like a player who wants to be traded. During the Cavaliers' game against the Thunder on Saturday, Love became visibly frustrated by Colin Sexton dribbling the ball for most of the sho tclock late in the second quarter. Kevin Love appeared to be visibly frustrated with Collin Sexton. pic.twitter.com/NKA02hBOt4— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) January 5, 2020Then late in the 4th he was seen turning his back on a play while the Thunder scored an easy layup. The Cavaliers lost by 15.Not a good look for Love here.#Cavs pic…

data-mm-id=”_bpyqpdq11″>This season was a make-it-or-break-it year for Jameis Winston. The former No. 1 overall pick has been the definition of inconsistent over the course of his young career so far; for every off-balance but perfectly-placed deep ball, he'd throw two head-scratching interceptions. The franchise didn't extend Winston going into the final year of his contract and brought in noted QB guru Bruce Arians to see if Winston's flaws could be kept in check enough to allow his talents to shine. Well, it worked. Sort of. Winston has shown enough this year that the Bucs plan to bring him back for 2020, as reported by Ian Rapoport. The #Bucs are slated to bring back QB Jameis Winston for 2020, sources say. But how it happens — which tag — will be fascinating. My…

data-mm-id=”_sddhab5tg”>The Pac-12 followed the Big Ten's lead and has canceled non-conference athletic events for the fall. The decision was made during a Friday conference call and an official announcement followed. The sports impacted include football, men's and women's soccer and women's volleyball. Obviously football is the focus here as it is cash cow of athletic departments around the country. With the cancellations, games like the yearly matchup between USC and Notre Dame are now wiped from the schedule. That will have a massive financial impact for both schools. Further decisions about the schedule for fall sports and whether there will be any changes will be determined at a later date. It's safe to assume all of the major conferences will follow this …