Hope Solo believes her six-month suspension and termination of contract by U.S. soccer stems more from her stance toward equal pay than her controversial Olympic comments.
In a new episode of the documentary โKeeping Score,โ Solo speaks on camera immediately following her meeting with coach Jill Ellis and U.S. Soccer CEO Dan Flynn where she learned the news, but also speaks again later on with a more measured opinion. She says she thinks her role in the fight for equal pay for womenโs soccer players had a role in her effective dismissal from the program.
โLiterally 17 years on this team and then to be treated this way in the end is, (pause), not surprising from U.S. Soccer, to be honest,โ she said. โ… I feel like Iโm being pushed out โcause it canโt be based off performance, my health. It canโt be based off anything but they donโt like me … because they know Iโve been fighting so hard for equal pay.โ
โTheyโre going to use my comments as an excuse to get rid of me forever so that they donโt have to deal with such a strong voice and opposition to field conditions and playing conditions and pay,โ she added. โI think Iโm just a thorn in their side and itโs time for them to cut their losses.โ
When I started #KeepingScore I never imagined it ending this way. Final episode @Fullscreen: https://t.co/Gqo8g8N3GC pic.twitter.com/IXzVvbOvloโ Hope Solo (@hopesolo) September 2, 2016
Solo posted a clip from the documentary on Twitter in which she tries to clarify her comments on Sweden. It appears to be filmed shortly after the U.S. loss.
Teammate Megan Rapinoe also says in a different interview on camera that she was unhappy with Soloโs suspension, citing a possible โlegal strategy.โ
