Indiana Fever guard Sophie Cunningham has sparked widespread conversation about whether or not transgender women and girls have a place in women’s sports. Now, United States Women’s National Team legend Megan Rapinoe is weighing in.

Cunningham ignited nationwide discourse last month when she spoke out against transgender women in an ESPN profile and then doubled down on the stance on multiple occasions. Over the past few weeks, Cunningham has been at the center of both outrage and praise as a result of those comments. Now, Rapinoe is offering her criticism.

Following her high-profile remarks in an ESPN profile, where she said she wanted to “protect young girls in a locker room, or young girls in sport who shouldn’t have to go against biological men,” Cunningham appeared to welcome the spotlight that followed.

Speaking in an interview shortly after those comments were published, Cunningham doubled down on her stance, describing her remarks as “common sense.”

“I said what I said. I think it’s kind of common sense,” Cunningham said, standing by her remarks. “And I think I’ll always believe in that. I think it’s really important to protect children, and that’s little girls who are also involved in that category. I stand on what I said.”

Cunningham later reaffirmed that message with an Instagram post showing herself flipping her hair alongside the caption “I said what I said.” She also posed for a photo with anti-trans activist Riley Gaines, who attended the team’s recent matchup against the Minnesota Lynx.

During the latest episode of her “Why Are You Like This?” podcast, Rapinoe gave her open and honest thoughts on the entire situation involving Cunningham, as she typically does for controversies of this nature.

“I want to address the controversy that is happening right now around trans women in sports. As you know, I’ve talked about this a lot and will continue to keep talking about this,” Rapinoe said on her podcast.

While Rapinoe openly conceded that she didn’t know Cunningham personally, she said that she learned everything she needed to about her motivations after Cunningham posed for a picture with noted anti-trans activist Riley Gaines.

“I don’t know Sophie, so I can only project what I see about her beliefs based on her actions, but seeing a picture of her with Riley Gaines after the game has told me everything I need to know about what’s happening,” Rapinoe said. “Riley Gaines has made it her life’s mission to exclude trans people from public life. She’s directly tied to the Heritage Foundation, the authors of Project 2025 and now 2026, who have now published a report that suggests that they want to repeal Title IX – the very piece of legislation that allowed athletes like Sophie and myself to compete in sports.”

“Sophie has claimed both to love trans people and support Title IX. And this is where I think the accountability with having a major platform is extremely important,” Rapinoe added.

Rapinoe went on to explain that the entire argument being made against transgender athletes is disingenuous because it portrays the issue as if grown men are competing against young girls, when that is not the case at all.

“You can hear it even in the language being used: that the root of trans exclusion is to protect young girls from men. To be clear, I would have that conversation, and it’s much needed in this country. But it frames the conversation as if we’re protecting young girls from men being in WNBA locker rooms – not happening. It villainizes trans girls as if they’re somehow magically older than their peers, or are men, when in reality they are also young girls,” Rapinoe said.

Rapinoe points out that the laws in place are just preventing kids from competing in sports, because elite sports have had policies in place for years preventing trans athletes.

“These laws are excluding kids – kids – from playing youth sports. If we want to have around elite sports, there are effective policies that have been in place for many years that no one noticed because they worked,” she said. “So if anyone is taking these talking points as legit or believing they’re protecting young girls in sports, I just have to ask, are you serious?”