Abby Wambach sprinted to wife Sarah Huffman after the final whistle sounded on America’s World Cup victory, and the two shared a touching moment that was years in the making.
Wambach, who is arguably the best women’s soccer player in United States history, had never been able to win the elusive World Cup title, but that changed after Team USA’s decisive 5-2 victory on Sunday. Wambach came in as a substitute and played through to the final whistle, then sprinted to the sidelines to share a moment with Huffman.
As cameras rolled, Sarah Huffman leaned down and embraced Abby Wambach. The two are perhaps the best-known couple in women’s soccer, each of them playing in the American NASL league.
Huffman has also been a very important part of Wambach’s career. In a 2013 interview with the New York Times , Abby said getting married to Huffman helped reignite her passion for the game.
“As you get older, I wouldn’t say the passion leaves you, but it changes,” Wambach said. “I’ll be honest. After I got married, I definitely had a shift in emotional devotion. Forever, it was just soccer — passion, life, love. Then I got married, and I had to transfer some of my energy. I want to be my best for my country, but I also made a really big promise and choice to be the best in my marriage. That has not always been the easiest thing to manage.”
But as her fourth World Cup neared, Wambach said, “I’m finally feeling like I’m having fun again.”
Abby Wambach, though not exactly in the closet, was quiet about her sexuality and did not come out publicly until she and Sarah Huffman married in 2013. Their marriage didn’t make many headlines at the time, Out Sports noted, and Wambach intended it that way.
Abby said she didn’t want her sexuality to define her, and wasn’t exactly looking to be a spokesperson for gay marriage. Instead she wanted her marriage to be looked at like any other.
“I never felt like I had to have this huge party for myself about my sexuality,” Wambach said. “To make a party for something that I think of as normal, for me, that just didn’t seem authentic. I wanted it to be as normal as possible.”
While she may not have a party about her sexuality, Abby Wambach and wife Sarah Huffman are likely partying now that she’s finally won a World Cup title.
[Image via Fox Sports screenshot]
