Soccer: Sauerbrunn named captain of U.S. women's national team

[January 18, 2021]    (Reuters) - Defensive standout Becky Sauerbrunn was named captain of the U.S. women's national soccer team on Sunday, taking over the role shared most recently by Megan Rapinoe, Carli Lloyd and Alex Morgan.

United States defender Becky Sauerbrunn (4) dribbles covered by South Korea forward Jung Seol-bin (11) during a USA Women's National Soccer Team Victory Tour at Bank of America Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jim Dedmon-USA TODAY Sports

The 35-year-old Sauerbrunn, a two-times World Cup champion, 2012 Olympic gold medallist and two-time National Women's Soccer League champion, previously served as co-captain of the national team from 2016-18.

Her appointment as captain was announced by head coach Vlatko Andonovski during a conference call ahead of the team's friendly against Colombia on Monday.

Andonovski said he had conversations with Rapinoe and Lloyd, 35 and 38 respectively, and both were "very supportive" of the decision to name Sauerbrunn as captain going forward.

Sauerbrunn has made 178 appearances for the United States, second among active players behind Lloyd (294).

(Reporting by Frank Pingue in Toronto)

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