Megan Rapinoe Reflects on ‘Power,’ Representation in SI Swimsuit Issue Over the Years

The history-making model was the first openly gay woman to pose for the issue in 2019.

Megan Rapinoe was photographed by Yu Tsai in Hollywood, Fla. / Yu Tsai/Sports Illustrated

SI Swimsuit legend Megan Rapinoe made history with the brand in 2019, when she became the first openly gay woman to pose for the issue. The professional soccer player, who retired last July after a phenomenal 17-year career, traveled to St. Lucia with photographer Ben Watts and was also named Sports Illustrated’s Sportsperson of the Year just a few months later. She also made waves with the USWNT in 2019, after the team won the World Cup title and filed (and later won) a class action lawsuit demanding equal pay for the women’s and men’s national teams.

The 39-year-old returned to the fold in honor of the publication’s 60th anniversary issue this year, and posed alongside 26 other brand icons including her partner, retired WNBA star Sue Bird, for a group SI Swimsuit Issue cover feature.

“I mean, I’ve always been a big fan of the magazine in general, and of the [Sports Illustrated] Swimsuit Issue. I was gay growing up, I didn’t really know it, but I was always excited when the swimsuit edition came out,” she candidly shared with a laugh while on location in Hollywood, Fla. “I think, also being gay, when I was asked [to appear in the 2019 magazine] and also knowing that that wasn’t something that was really represented in the issue [yet, made it more special].”

Rapinoe added that it’s not really about seeing women in bathing suits, it’s more about observing the “power” in each woman through the images that are captured.

Megan Rapinoe was photographed by Ben Watts in St. Lucia. / Ben Watts/Sports Illustrated

“I think as the issue and the covers become way more diverse, I think so many more women can take power from that. There’s so many beauty standards placed on women, just sort of inherently in our society, you just see it everywhere,” the California native, who played for the NWSL’s OL Reign for 11 seasons, added. “So to be able to pick up that magazine and see just such a myriad of beautiful, powerful, strong women was always inspiring to me. To be one of those, to show off an athletic body, the representation part, and being able to show up in that particular space as a gay woman was really important for me, and I think important for the magazine as well.”