Trinity Rodman’s game day routines are chaotic. After slowly waking up, the Washington Spirit forward enjoys a sesame bagel with strawberry cream cheese as the day picks up pace.
After enjoying a fulfilling lunch, the 21-year-old spends a lot of time looking for her pregame outfit. She peruses her closet for the right clothes, changing multiple times, before rushing out the door to meet up with her mom and carpool together to D.C.’s Audi Field. While the process may put her behind schedule, making sure her outfit is perfect is part of her process of being game ready.
“It’s something so little, but I think it’s something that really gets me ready for a game,” Rodman told WTOP. “Like, if I find an outfit that I just think screams ‘Trin,’ I’m gonna feel confident walking in, and I feel confident putting my jersey on, and I’m gonna feel confidant as soon as the game starts, so that’s a huge thing for me.”
The chaos is part of a winning routine for the 21-year-old, whose exploits for the Spirit have already earned her a championship, individual accolades, call-ups with the U.S. women’s national team and one of the richest contracts in the National Women’s Soccer League.
With the 2023 regular season winding down, WTOP sat down with Rodman to talk about her third season in D.C., adjusting to life following the Women’s World Cup and growing up as a professional soccer player.
Playoff push
The Spirit enter the final weekend of the NWSL season needing a win at home against North Carolina to secure their place in the playoffs. Washington (7-5-9, 30 points) currently sits in fifth place and has only won once in its last five matches.
However, in a tight playoff race where four points separate third and 10th place, Sunday’s match against the Courage is a must-win.
The Spirit’s front office is pulling all the stops to bring 15,000 fans to the regular-season finale to cap off the team’s first full season at Audi Field. There will be a trucker hat giveaway and $2 beers, while supplies last, as part of the pregame festivities. However, all eyes will then shift to the field, where Washington looks to secure its second playoff berth in three years.
“D.C. is such an intense and such a die-hard fan base, and I love it so much,” Rodman, who has five goals this season, said. “The results and the performances that we’ve been giving them, I think, is another reason that they want to come and people spread the word and [are] bringing their kids, too.”
On the field, Rodman is continuing to gel with her new teammate Ouleymata Sarr, who joined the Spirit during the summer. While she has not been with Washington as long as other attacking talents such as Ashley Hatch and Ashley Sanchez, Rodman said the French attacker adds a new energy to the team tactically and physically.
As for those new fans coming to Sunday’s match, Rodman advised them to “be patient” with watching them play. The Spirit’s style is to build up their play before striking down on their opponents with speed and flair coming down the wings.
The wait was evident during the Spirit’s last home match against Kansas City on Sept. 30, when Rodman outran the entire Current defense to chase down a pass before firing the game-winner in the 92nd minute.
“One thing about us is that it’s not just kicking the ball around, like you’re gonna see personalities come out, you’re gonna see creativity and you’re gonna see fun,” she said. “You’re gonna see those plays where it’s like, ‘oh!’ I think the most fun part about watching [the Spirit]. It’s just like looking at players and being like, ‘whoa, how did she do that?'”
World Cup experience
Rodman was one of four Spirit players called up by the U.S. women’s national team to the 2023 Women’s World Cup in Australia and New Zealand. She started three of four matches as the Stars and Stripes were bounced by Sweden in the Round of 16.
The experience tested her body physically, with games and training so compressed in a short amount of time, she said. However, while some of her teammates experienced jet-lag and struggles returning to NWSL play, Rodman said it was easy to dial back into the Spirit because of the quick nature of her career.
“I don’t think it’ll really sink in until maybe this offseason because right now, all I’m thinking about is winning this game on Sunday and making playoffs,” Rodman said of her World Cup experience.
However, her time with the U.S. and watching how the veterans managed their time influenced how the California native viewed her career.
Rodman told WTOP that seeing how players such as Megan Rapinoe and Alex Morgan prepare for matches by watching film on the team bus before training or by warming up early showed her what it takes to be the best.
“I honestly can say I was relying on my talent my rookie year, and I didn’t go the extra mile, and as it’s going, it’s everyone has talent, [and] it’s not that simple,” she said. “I think to master it and to not only study to get yourself better but also study the people around you because you’re not going to be able to play the exact same every single game.”
Growing up in DC
At 18, Washington drafted Rodman with the second overall pick in the 2021 NWSL College Draft. Since then, Rodman has embraced the fan-favorite role, creating goal celebrations with her teammates and helping create fun scenarios for the team’s pregame photo.
During postgame, she is seen patrolling the sidelines, taking pictures with fans and signing autographs. Rodman said she can still relate with the “youngins” because she thinks her brain and thoughts are more related to a younger crowd. She continues to go live on her Instagram page throughout the season and recently joined her teammate Ashley Sanchez in creating a TikTok video for the Spirit.
“I just love talking to people, making people laugh, making videos, following people online,” she said. “I just think all of that is so much fun.”
Rodman’s behavior exudes youth on the field, but she admits she is “living an adult life as a kid.” A year after signing a four-year, $1.1 million extension, Rodman bought her first house in Northern Virginia. It is “still coming along” in decorating as she balances her personal commitments with her pro soccer career.
Will she decorate her home for Halloween? Maybe, considering how involved her neighborhood is for holidays. If she does, her home will have “the best candy on deck.”
Until then, life continues to be a balance, and right now, all of Rodman’s focus is on helping Washington enter the playoffs.
“I think prioritizing who you actually are in the reality and what your future is [is] very difficult, but I’m working on it,” she said.
