Sue Bird, Megan Rapinoe announce separation on social media

Retired sports stars Sue Bird and Megan Rapinoe announced on social media Friday that after a decade together, they were no longer a couple.

“There really is no easy or smooth way to share this news,” they wrote in an Instagram post. “After careful consideration, we have made the decision to separate.

“This was not an easy decision, but it was one that we made together, with great love, respect and care for each other.”

Bird, 45, won four WNBA titles during her 19 seasons in the league, all with the Seattle Storm. She also won five Olympic gold medals with the U.S. national team. The former UConn star was the WNBA’s first overall pick in 2002 after winning two NCAA titles with the Huskies.

Rapinoe, 40, played for the United States women’s soccer team winning the FIFA Women’s World Cup title in 2015 and 2019. She also won the 2012 Olympic gold medal with the U.S. team.

Bird retired from the WNBA after the 2022 season and Rapinoe from the NWSL at the end of the 2023 season.

“We have shared an entire life over the past decade, through big times and quiet times, and it is something we will always carry with us,” Bird and Rapinoe wrote.

“We are so grateful to this incredible community who have supported us, welcomed us and supported us exactly as we are.”

Bird, who was inducted into the Naismith Hall of Fame last year, is now the general manager of the United States women’s national basketball team.

Bird and Rapinoe also had common business interests, including a podcast called “A Touch More.”

“[To] Building a network around this has been an immense joy,” they wrote of the podcast. “The conversations, the laughter, the connection – it means more than we can express in words. Even though this chapter of making the podcast together is coming to an end, what we’ve built with you is not.”