Soccer Star Abby Wambach Is Releasing a New Book — Here’s Why She Wants All Women to Read It
American soccer star Abby Wambach helped bring her team to Olympic gold, and now she wants to help all women score big with her new book, Wolfpack.
“I think that there’s never been a more important moment for women in this country,” Wambach, 38, says in an exclusive interview with PEOPLE.
“I think that what women need more than anything is their individual power and to tap into the collective power of all women,” she continues. “Every woman has their inner wolf and my belief — my dream — and what I’ve become obsessed with is that every woman find and unleash their wolf so they can unite their pack.”
The two-time Olympic gold medalist and FIFA World Cup champion was inspired to write her second book — which will be released by Celadon Books on April 16, 2019 — after reaching some personal revelations following her 2015 retirement.
Wambach recalls receiving the ESPY icon award in 2016, alongside the Los Angeles Lakers’ Kobe Bryant and the Denver Broncos’ Peyton Manning. While she felt honored, she says it also triggered a realization that was like a “slap” in the face.
“I’m retiring from my career, standing up with two of the most decorated athletes that have played any sport and I’m still feeling grateful,” Wambach says. “As I walk off the stage, I realize, it like slaps me in the face, my career is now done and look at the three of us walking into different retirements.”
Wambach respects both men and thinks they deserve everything they’ve earned, but explains she’s frustrated by the disparity in her pay compared to theirs.
“Here I am trying to recreate a new life for myself, having scored more goals than women or men at the international level, and I’m now having to start my hustle and they’re [ending theirs],” she says. “This didn’t make sense to me. What the hell is going on here? I just got so angry.”
The soccer star brought up the same story, as well as important lessons she’s learned about self empowerment, during the commencement speech she delivered at Barnard College in 2018. The speech immediately went viral and inspired Wambach to write Wolfpack.
She says the book will focus on a set of seven rules (like “make failure your fuel” and “lead from the bench”) to guide women so they can discover their own power. The book will further draw on lessons Wambach learned during her soccer career as well as in her personal life.
(Read More: PEOPLE)