American women’s soccer team captain Lindsey Horan has backtracked on previous comments that eventually forced an apology out of the star.

Horan voiced her displeasure with the American fan base in an interview she gave to The Athletic earlier this year. She claimed that the majority of Americans “aren’t that smart” when it comes to grasping the nuances of the game.

“American soccer fans, most of them aren’t smart. They don’t know the game. They don’t understand. [But] it’s getting better and better. I’m going to p**s off some people, but the game is growing in the US.

“People are more and more knowledgeable, but so much of the time people take what the commentators say, right? My mom does it,” she said on February 1.

The 29-year-old has now made the most of the chance to address the matter and offer her deepest apologies after her remarks were heavily criticized. Before the Women’s Gold Cup, she addressed the media and apologized for her comments, expressing her immense thanks to the team’s supporters.

Horan comments on her previous remarks

Horan paid tribute to the devoted soccer fans who are always learning more about the sport and the increasing popularity of soccer in the US.

“First and foremost, I would like to apologize to our fans. Some of my comments were poorly expressed and there was a massive lesson learned for me. When I think about our fans, I love them so much, this team loves them so much, and I can’t begin to explain how much they mean to us.”

“Every time we step out and train, every time we step out and play in games, we play for you guys. You are our inspiration, you are our motivation, and seeing you wearing our jerseys and seeing you screaming our names and chanting ‘USA,’ that’s what we play for.

“And I never wanted to take any of that away. And continuing on that, the soccer culture in America is changing and growing so much in such a positive way. The last thing I ever wanted to do was to offend anyone in that manner. So again, I deeply, deeply apologize.”

Lindsey Horan comments on her apology

Such remarks gained a lot of traction after the 2023 World Cup when the USWNT lost to Sweden in the quarterfinals. This was the earliest elimination in the history of the U.S. squad, and the Lyon star was the captain of her nation.

Horan added that thinking about her remarks and how others reacted to them was what caused her to apologize. “What I had inside of me, how I felt about it and how what I read and my opinion of my own comments,” she said.

“And also me wanting to express how much the fans just mean to me personally. And again, not wanting to take anything away from that. So I think that was just something always within me that I wanted to do.”

Furthermore, she expressed her desire for people to talk about the national team in the same way they talk about Manchester City, Arsenal, or Barcelona.

“That’s what I want people to say about us. I want people to talk about how incredible we are on the ball, the possession, the style of play, the technical ability, the tactical changes mid-game, these types of things.”

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