U.S. Soccer legend Alex Morgan is on a mission post-professional athletic career to redefine what winning looks like off the pitch in modern motherhood and help alleviate the pressures that weigh on new moms.
The mother of two -- Morgan shares 5-year-old daughter Charlie and 5-month-old son Enzo with husband Servando Carrasco, also a former professional soccer player -- spoke to "Good Morning America" about her next chapter outside of soccer, a new era of advocacy for mothers, in which she emphasizes the importance of finding support systems and community to share it with.
"We all have our own unique journey as moms and with our children, and that's more than OK," Morgan said. "In many ways, being a working mom and juggling it all is a sign of vulnerability and confidence."
Ahead of her full circle career moment -- when her iconic No. 13 jersey becomes the first jersey retired in San Diego Wave Fútbol Club history on Sept. 7 -- Morgan told "GMA" that sharing it with the fans who've supported her alongside her two children will be "emotional," allowing her space to reflect on the moments that "shaped me as a person and as a soccer player."
"I feel so fortunate that I got to play for five years with my daughter -- on the field with her after the games, special moments walking out before the game with her, her being in the stands waving to me," she said. "It's not only seeing them and how my journey is so unique to me, but also all the advocacy that I've worked for."
In addition to her illustrious soccer record -- 123 career goals, 224 caps for the U.S. Women's National Team, a NWSL Golden Boot and two FIFA Women's World Cup titles -- one of Morgan's standout accomplishments was helping spearhead the momentous effort that secured a landmark equal pay deal for U.S. women's soccer. "Now in the NWSL, we can proudly be able to stand tall and say, 'You can be able to do it all, you can have a family and continue playing,' when that wasn't always the case," she said. As for her jersey recognition, she added, "To have me be recognized and my jersey be forever retired -- that does not happen often, not only with female athletes, but athletes at all, so it's a really proud moment." The Wave’s match against the Houston Dash and postgame jersey ceremony will air on ESPN.
She continued, "'Combo feeding' actually wasn't even a really popular term at the time, nor was it something you wanted to talk about publicly because of the judgment that that could be cast on you."
The U.S. Department of Agriculture's WIC Breastfeeding Support website defines combo feeding, or "combination feeding," as feeding an infant both breast milk and formula. It is also sometimes referred to as "mixed feeding."
While Morgan was pregnant with Enzo and retiring from soccer, she said she was approached by a female-founded, mom-led European-style organic baby formula company, Bobbie, to be involved in its newest campaign, "There's No Scoreboard in Motherhood," which launched Thursday morning.
"This campaign is all about replacing comparison with confidence and having no score in motherhood," Morgan said. "And that's how I've really tried to live my life over the last five years as I became a mom. It's been a lot of learning about myself too throughout this process, because as an athlete, all I've done in the past is compare myself to others -- to do certain things and achieve certain markers -- so taking that away and totally stripping that away from me, it's almost such a relief and like a weight off your shoulders."
Bobbie, which made TIME's 100 Most Influential Companies of 2025, has worked previously with the National Women's Soccer League, partnered with tennis star and mom Naomi Osaka, and most recently sponsored the maternity leave of New York Times bestselling cookbook author Caro Chambers.
Morgan said her collaboration with female-founded Bobbie was "a natural fit" because "immediately what stood out to me was their advocacy and support for moms everywhere, and especially athlete moms," which she said "made me feel extremely confident."
Morgan also spoke Thursday about the need for parents -- particularly mothers -- to have a support system in their lives, whether it's a mom group, a spouse or their own parent.
"I think what's important is being able to have that support system, because the burden always falls on the mom," she said. "In a lot of ways, we're like the primary caregiver, whether you're breastfeeding or formula feeding, you're naturally the one that's like having that instinct when a baby cries, like, you know what they need."
Like any mom, Morgan said there are "certain things that sometimes come up naturally," such as "comparing my journey to maybe my sister's who has a son that's three weeks older than mine, and our feeding journeys, how they're sleeping."
Still, she reminded other moms, "We're all trying our best and we're doing a good job."
"Being public about it and being able to talk about it really helps for me and rewires the way that I think," she added.
