Alex Morgan’s tea party: Women’s World Cup Moment No. 10

Editor’s note: Each day between now and the kickoff of the first match of the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup on July 20, FOX Sports is counting down the most memorable moments in the tournament’s 32-year history.

The United States played England in the semifinals of the 2019 FIFA Women’s World Cup on July 2, which also happened to be star forward Alex Morgan’s 30th birthday. To celebrate, she scored and became the first player to ever score a birthday goal at the Women’s World Cup.

But that’s not all she did.

After she scored, Morgan ran to the corner of the field and celebrated by miming sipping a cup of tea. The celebration quickly drew criticism from all over the world because many felt Morgan was mocking England’s love of tea, but she denied that it had anything to do with England after the match.

“I feel like we didn’t take an easy route through this tournament, Morgan told reporters. “And that’s the tea.”

England had a chance to equalize from the penalty spot in the 84th minute but Alyssa Naeher stopped Steph Houghton’s shot from crossing the goal line. The U.S. won 2-1, capping off a memorable birthday for Morgan.