PARIS, France -- Megan Rapinoe, the second-ever winner of the women's Ballon d'Or given to the best player on earth, had better things to do than pick up her award in Paris on Monday. "Bonsoir everyone!" she called out cheerily to the theater packed with dinner jackets and ballgowns, in a video that looked as if it was recorded in the corner of her Seattle living room. She apologised for not making it over: "It's a bummer." Lionel Messi, Kylian Mbappé and Virgil van Dijk were among those who had shown up to applaud her, yet her snubbing of the ceremony seemed fair enough: judged by her off- as well as on-field impact, she may be soccer's biggest icon today.
Megan Rapinoe takes home 2019 Ballon d'Or but is so much more than the best player in women's soccer
