Alex Morgan in her final game. Thank You Alex!

From San Diego, the world watches as a soccer icon plays in her final game with her daughter Charlie in tow. Alex Morgan prepares for an emotional sendoff, a World Cup winner, Olympic gold medalist and an NWSL champion. We celebrate number 13 tonight. I'm going to get to the point quickly. I'm retiring. My name is Alex Morgan and I'm number one and I play left forward. Soccer has been a part of me for 30 years. It was one of the first things that I ever loved and I gave everything to the score and what I got in return was more than I could have ever dreamed of. Success for me is defined by never giving up and giving your all every single day on the field. Giving my all in the relentless push for global investment in women's sports because we deserve that. Charlie came up to me the other day and said that when she grows up she wants to be a soccer player. It just made me immensely proud not because I wish for her to become a soccer player when she grows up but because a pathway exists that even a four-year-old can see now. I just want to thank the fans for always supporting us, being there, showing up day in and day out. Teammates, coaches, staff, everyone who has played a part in my career has played some part that has shaped into me because of you because of soccer and I am forever grateful. It's been a ride. Thank you. One final ride indeed. Morgan, a player that pushed this club, this league and this sport forward. It has been a joy to be able to live in the era of Alex Morgan. We talk about the greats in a lot of different sports, the greats in soccer globally and Alex Morgan is definitely among them. To be able to celebrate her in San Diego, her home one more time in front of this crowd, this is exactly what she deserves for all of the hard work she has put in over her beautiful 15-year career. Here comes Alex Morgan again with Charlie in front of a crowd that she has inspired time and time again. Alex Morgan ready to be honored tonight in San Diego. And I'm not crying, you're crying, Jordan. There are so many good posters here, so many fans that flew across the country to come last minute to make sure that they got to experience Alex Morgan's last game. In her press conference earlier this week, she talked about watching Mia Hamm's last game as a young kid and how that game changed her. She's changed so many players with the dream of doing what she's done and now she gets to inspire those yet again who are in the stands to watch her play one last game of professional soccer. It's going to be a special moment here in San Diego, final game for Alex Morgan. The Wave captain led San Diego to unprecedented success as the Wave became the first expansion team in league history to make the playoffs in its inaugural season. Led by Morgan, the club followed that by lifting their first trophy, the 2023 NWSL Shield in San Diego's second season of play. Tonight's match will be Alex's 150th NWSL regular season match, 200th overall club match, and 63rd with San Diego Wave FC. Joined by her family and friends at midfield, we honor Alex with a Wave number 63 jersey. Fans, make some noise again, she's one of the greatest of all time. She is Alex Morgan. From Snapdragon Stadium, we prepare for this NWSL match featuring the San Diego Wave and the North Carolina Courage and the final minutes of Alex Morgan's career. Jenny Chute caught up with a woman of the hour, so let's send it down to Jenny. Alex, first of all, congratulations on a remarkable career and of course the addition of your family as well. I know that the past couple of weeks have been incredibly emotional. I just heard you had an emotional moment in the locker room as well. How are you feeling today ahead of it? I'm feeling really good, no tears yet. It's yeah, just been filled with a lot of time with family this morning and just really trying to enjoy every moment and my teammates and everyone continues to surprise me every moment and every time I turn and look, but it's just incredible. I never expected to have like this much of a kind of surprise and like overwhelming feeling of just positive support. You've won everything on and off the pitch. Do you feel that? Do you feel the lightness, the weight lifted off of you, kind of reflecting that you absolutely did win? Yeah, don't make me cry right now. Yeah, it was gonna happen at some point. Yeah, I've been smiling a lot these last few days because even just keeping in the retirement and the pregnancy for so long was just really difficult not to share with people and everything's so much better together. The reason I am where I am today and who I am is because of so many people that just impacted me for the better. I did nothing alone and so the last weeks previously was really difficult and so I've just been smiling a lot knowing that there were so many, so many incredibly good moments. But also like so many lows and valleys along the way that I had to like dig myself through and so getting to this point now just talking about you know being a human and being vulnerable to everyone and just smiling and enjoying the moment like as an athlete you only get to do that certain points in time and this is just the it's the most special moment. Well enjoy this day, enjoy this moment because you absolutely deserve it. Thank you. Has not scored in the regular season here in 2024. This in her final game. Morgan saved by Murphy. A bit of a grimace there from Alex Morgan. She's probably going to give Casey Murphy a little bit but look at this the poise from Morgan to step up and Murphy could just reach out for it. It's not far enough in the corner be prepared. She had to be better that day than she was the day before so all the kids listening she didn't get here because she was gifted. Does she have gifts? Absolutely. She got here because she worked relentlessly day after day to become better. Wesley the center back. Gotta feel good one more time embracing your teammates after a goal is scored. The high of this feeling as Wesley jumps up at the near post senses a little gap there between Rao and Williams and make sure she makes this count as Alex Morgan gets to celebrate one more goal with her teammates in San Diego. You can hear the chants. Poetic now. It's the farewell she deserves. Alex Morgan walks off the pitch for the final time. The end of a legendary career. Pick up three points. Alex Morgan it's been a wonderful day just honoring a legendary player played her final minutes ever but a tough day for San Diego on the field. Emotional day for everyone there at Snapdragon but mostly for Alex Morgan to be able to feel all the feels for one more time. Putting on your jersey, stepping out there, competing, participating with your teammates something that it's just there's nothing like it Maura. There's nothing like being on a team and she got to do it one more time. Will you just see all the love from the North Carolina players as well so appreciative of Alex Morgan. She's building her own team, her own family is expanding right now. We love to see it. She's one of the best goal scorers that ever did it. When you think of Mia Hamm, Messi, Ronaldo, Alex Morgan's right there. She has the same goals per game percentage as all three of those greats in the women's game, in the men's game. Christine Sinclair is right there too. The only one that beats her is Abby Wambach but that is how great she is and everybody is going to want to have their second with the best there is. John Nehas saying thank you to Alex Morgan. 123 goals with the U.S. women's national team, 60 here in the WSL. She leaves this league fourth all-time golden boot winner in 2022 and these are videos that these kids will look back at forever. Show their friends at school look what I got to do. All the jerseys that is so cool from every different era and here comes Charlie. Well just some love for her superstar mom. She's in for the cameras. Charlie is used to it by now. Yeah and this has been so special for them to be able to share these moments on the field after every single game. I talked about it earlier. Win, lose, draw, it doesn't matter. Alex is out on the field with Charlie afterwards. Okay I'm gonna try to keep this short without crying. Oh what a ride it's been. I just I want to thank my teammates who have constantly challenged me every day and made me better. I want to thank my family who have relentlessly supported me, sacrificed so much for me. I love you guys and all 95 of you who are here tonight and the fans. You push me to be my best self every day. You push me to be the best soccer player, to be the best mom, to be the best person I can be. Just showing up every day, supporting me, encouraging me, challenging me, criticizing me at times. I just thank you so much. I know people have come here with three days notice from Alaska, Massachusetts, Massachusetts, can't even say that, Colorado, Florida, honestly all around the country and just thank you. There has been so many incredible moments in my career but this one, this last moment I share on the field with you, I will cherish forever. So thank you from the bottom of my heart. Thank you. Ladies and gentlemen, Alex Morgan. Well, it's the end of an era. Alex Morgan officially retires. Kaylin Sheridan doing what she does best. She always makes the player of the game have a little extra during their interview but it's champagne showers for Alex Morgan. Hopefully she can get those eyes clean now. She's got that sparkling cider maybe. She did a good job not crying during most of it but that might be the ticket there. It's an honor and I think it's for us to be able to be here but to watch Alex Morgan play. We got to see the start, we got to see the finish and people look back at the greats in all different sports and they're always going to talk about them and we've lived in a soccer era where we've got to watch one of the best goal scorers ever do it and she said thank you to everybody but we thank her for giving us so many goals to talk about, so many great teams to huddle in front of the TV around so thank you Alex Morgan. You can just see Charlie looking on her whole family's here and just one final thank you at Snapdragon Stadium. The greatest of all time, a legend in San Diego, in soccer, in sports. I think there's going to be some tears ricocheting tonight. We just heard Alex Morgan say thank you for letting me be me. When you're in it you sometimes forget how special those moments are to be surrounded by people you trust that you're working hard with every single day for a common goal. It can it can be getting away from you, it can be fleeting but I think it's a good reminder that things can change quickly. You know four days ago Alex Morgan didn't know that nobody knew this was Alex Morgan's last game. So I hope it's a reminder to all the players as being someone on the other side of it to enjoy those moments, the good, the bad, the hard, the joyful. Being on a team is special, playing in front of people who support you every single week is special and San Diego is really lucky that they got to see Alex Morgan start this team but also leave on her accord here at home at Snapdragon. Well we wish Alex a happy and healthy pregnancy as well and I'm sure and good luck to Charlie being a big sister. It's a big responsibility. I think she's gonna nail it. Yeah I think so too. We can see the emotions pouring out from her San Diego teammates too. Just speaks to the impact that Morgan has had. One final round of applause for Alex Morgan. We'll come back after a break to break this one down but thank you Alex Morgan for a wonderful career.