Megan Rapinoe has said it would be “incredible” to see Colin Kaepernick play flag football at the 2028 Olympics, as the ex-NFL quarterback continues to be exiled from the league.
Kaepernick recently stated his desire to participate in the new Olympic sport when it debuts at the games in Los Angeles.
“Hopefully we’ll be out there,” Kaepernick told Sky Sports when asked about playing flag football at the next Olympics. “We’re gonna work on some things, see if we can make it in there. But we’d love to be out there.”
The 36-year-old has not played in the NFL since 2016 after he generated controversy by kneeling during the national anthem to protest racial injustice and police brutality.
Following Kaepernick’s protest, Rapinoe became one of the first white athletes to also kneel during the anthem as a show of solidarity. U.S. Soccer enacted a policy requiring players to stand for the anthem in response to Rapinoe’s protest, which stood from 2017 until it was rescinded in 2020.
As Kaepernick continues to be “blackballed,” Rapinoe said that the ex-San Francisco 49ers quarterback deserves a chance to represent the United States on the biggest stage.
“That would be really, an incredible moment to have Colin Kaepernick represent America on the biggest sports stage,” Rapinoe told USA TODAY’s Mackenzie Salmon.
“He continues to be blackballed by the NFL and one of the biggest sports in our country,” Rapinoe added. “So his career was really robbed from him. And continues to be. So if he could get the opportunity to represent America in the Olympics, and wearing the flag and everything, I think that would be incredible.”
In 2019, Kaepernick reached an undisclosed settlement after suing the NFL for collusion to keep him out of the league.