Look up the world "badass" in any American dictionary, and it should return the words "U.S. Women's National Soccer Team." Look up the term "LFG," and you'll get the unofficial slogan of said team — Let's Fucking Go.
The obscenity is intentional, of course. There's nothing dainty about these woman, and there's swagger to spare. It's a call to arms. And now it's a documentary film of the same name by Academy Award winners Andrea Nix Fine and Sean Fine, headed to HBO Max.
This time, it's not just about soccer. It's about the team's ongoing fight for equal pay in a world in which men's teams that don't even qualify for the World Cup (looking at you, USMNT) can make more money for losing.
"This fight is so much bigger than ourselves and the Women’s National Team," said Megan Rapinoe. "We’re doing it for the next generation of female soccer players and for women throughout the world in all industries and walks of life who are also fighting for equality."
The doc goes inside the fight over equal pay, which came to a head in 2019, just three months before the Women's World Cup, when the U.S. players filed a class-action, gender-discrimination lawsuit against the U.S. Soccer Federation.
By the way, the U.S. women won that tournament — the team's second straight victory (the event is held every four years) and fourth since 1991. The U.S. men's best finish? Third place. In 1930. (Since then, they've made it no further than the quarterfinals.)
"As a female director," said director Andrea Nix Fine of Change Content, "it’s my honor to capture this defining moment in these women’s lives. It’s their story, in their own words, and Sean and I are so excited to give these women the platform they are sorely due."
No release date for LFG just yet. Stay tuned.
