Julie Foudy

“Once I was walking with teammate Joy Fawcett in a hotel in Haiti. We were barefoot, and the lights went out to save electricity. Joy felt something crunch beneath her feet, and she felt the need to shine her flashlight on the floor. It was, I swear, a five-foot cockroach.”

“I am all about big breakfasts - I love carby stuff in the morning.”

“If there is one certainty in soccer, it is this: The quickest road to becoming a winning soccer team is to have a great goalkeeper.”

“I tried Zumba, but I laughed the entire time! I was so bad, it's embarrassing.”

“We love to make sure all the boxes are checked - that we aren't just prepared but over-prepared before we raise our hand. It's that discipline that I love most about women, but it's also what holds us women back the most because by the time we raise our hand, that opportunity is often gone.”

“Imagine the day when girls everywhere won't have to fight for the right to be recognized for their great work or their contributions to society.”

“Penalty kicks are so much about confidence and your mentality going into them. If you go walk up to a kick and you're not sure where you're gonna place it, or you're feeling a little uneasy, that's when you often miss it.”

“I have been involved with U.S. Soccer for 30 years, and I don't remember one senior woman in the organization that you would deal with on a daily basis in a position that was making decisions. That is a huge issue. How many times do you hear, 'There are no women around?' Well, they are fishing in the wrong pond.”

“I remember the day I met Cammi Granato, a former star on the U.S. women's hockey team. We were at a Women's Sports Foundation dinner in 1996, and she came over to introduce herself. She had watched the U.S. women's soccer team win gold at the Atlanta Olympics and was hopeful the U.S. women's hockey team could do the same.”

“I would be doing anything to avoid a 9-5 job and high heels. Lifeguard, beach volleyball player, whatever.”

“Most sports federations, corporations, and governments don't change voluntarily. Change is brought by the disenfranchised demanding better.”

“In so many ways, my soccer career taught me about seeing the value of all people, whether or not society sees it first. Relationships with people who are perceived to be 'different' have taught me the same lesson.”

“Sports build good habits, confidence, and discipline. They make players into community leaders and teach them how to strive for a goal, handle mistakes, and cherish growth opportunities.”

“Girls are so quick to say they can't do something, and they won't even try, whereas boys tend to just go for something even if it's probably a bad idea.”

“I always thought it would be so much fun to write a book.”

“Whether you empower one person or the free world, that is leadership.”

“When I was growing up, you couldn't watch soccer on TV. But now, you can get it on every channel, every hour of the day, every day, literally.”

“As female athletes all over the world have discovered the hard way, changing cultures and mindsets takes action.”

“It's so valuable to learn that when you put yourself in an uncomfortable situation, you'll be fine, and you'll probably come out even stronger.”

“It all comes down to perspective. When I get crabby about something, like the delay that was driving me crazy because I told my kids I'd be home for dinner, I have to remind myself where it fits in the scheme of things. We have to say, 'That's life,' which can sometimes be comforting.”