Hope Solo - The Villain
SOCCER - GOALIE - USWNT
ARCHETYPE: THE VILLAIN
Day 41/135
Athletic Accomplishments
There is really no question that Hope Solo is the best goalkeeper in the history of U.S. Soccer. That designation is even more impressive when you realize that she played forward through high school, scoring 109 goals and leading her team to a state championship as a senior.
Despite being new to the position, Solo became the best goalkeeper in Pac-10 history at the University of Washington. She was a four-time All-Pac-10 selection (including as a freshman, her first year as a goalie), a three-time All-American, and the first goalkeeper to ever win Pac-10 Player of the Year. She also broke multiple records at UW, as the as the all-time leader in shutouts (18), saves (325) and goals against average (GAA) (1.02).
Solo played for the U.S. Women’s National Team from 2000-2016, in which time she set multiple records for the team, including appearances (202), starts (190), wins (153), shutouts (102), wins in a season (26), and consecutive minutes played (1,256). Solo also recorded the longest undefeated streak (55 games), spanning over 6 years—from March 7, 2002 to July 16, 2008.
Solo racked up plenty of other wins, including:
2009 U.S. Soccer Female Athlete of the Year
2x Olympic gold medals (2008, 2012)
2011 World Cup Golden Glove
2011 World Cup Bronze Ball
2015 World Cup Champion
But even with all the wins, it wasn’t all sunshine and lollipops for Solo, who remains a controversial character and leaves a complicated legacy for the USWNT.
Character Archetype: The Villain
The Villain
The trouble started in the 2007 World Cup, when Hope Solo was benched in the semifinal in favor of Briana Scurry. The USWNT lost 4-0. In a postgame interview, Solo gave her raw, unfiltered opinion, saying, “It was the wrong decision, and I think anybody who knows anything about the game knows that… There’s no doubt in my mind I would have made those saves.”
Solo was criticized for her remarks and for elevating herself while dunking on her teammate. In team sports, you just don’t do that. You don’t publicly air out your frustrations. You don’t blame one person. Think what you want, vent in the locker room, and win the next one.
Many of her teammates shunned her, and decided as a group that she should sit out from the consolation game. Some consolation that is.
But that wasn’t the end of Solo’s drama.
In 2012, she married Jerramy Stevens the day after he was arrested for a domestic violence incident against her.
In 2014, she was arrested for assault charges after an altercation with her sister and nephew.
In 2015, her husband received a DUI while driving a U.S. Soccer van, with Solo drunk and complicit in the passenger seat.
In 2016, after losing to Sweden in the 2016 Olympic quarterfinal, she called her opponents “a bunch of cowards.”
And generally, many of her teammates thought she was a jerk.
After being suspended for her comments, and likely due to the compounding issues throughout her career, the USWNT decided to terminate her contract. The end.
Many in soccer have commented on what a strange mindset it takes to be a successful goalkeeper. While the team gets credit for the wins, goalies often shoulder blame for the losses. You’re the only one allowed to use your hands. The only one back there between the sticks. It’s kind of lonely.
Solo had all the tools to thrive as a truly phenomenal tactical goalkeeper. But she lacked the compassion and diplomacy it takes to be a good teammate. In the end, she had to go. Solo.