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The World Cup Kiss That Reminded Us Love Is Love

by Hilary Weaver

I didn't think I could ugly cry (PSA: crying is actually beautiful and healthy) in front of the TV any more than I did when SCOTUS legalized gay marriage nationwide last Friday. But dang it, Abby Wambach, you've triggered my tear ducts once more. After the all-star player and her team won the FIFA Women's World Cup on Sunday night, Wambach did not pass go, did not collect $200, before sprinting straight for and embracing her wife, Sarah Huffman. And in that moment, it was like SCOTUS turned America rainbow all over again. Through her very normal, affectionate action when Abby Wambach kissed her wife, she helped to normalize gay marriage for America.

Social media was abuzz after the adorable smooch. Yes, the world saw one spouse kissing another spouse. And the fact that viewers can appreciate this kiss as an act of simple love between two loving partners is cause for celebration.

Wambach and Huffman married in 2013, and Wambach has gone on record to say that her outlook on both life and her career changed after the two wed. According to The New York Times, the two-time Olympic gold medalist says that once she married, she was no longer able to devote all of her energy and passion to the game. And she wouldn't have it any other way.

"As you get older, I wouldn't say the passion leaves you, but it changes," Wambach said. "I'll be honest. After I got married, I definitely had a shift in emotional devotion. Forever, it was just soccer — passion, life, love. Then I got married, and I had to transfer some of my energy. I want to be my best for my country, but I also made a really big promise and choice to be the best in my marriage. That has not always been the easiest thing to manage.

And it looks like Wambach's got the ultimate fan-base in Huffman, who is also a former professional player and helped her team win the 2002 FIFA U-19 World Cup, according to FIFA.com. And like any dynamic duo spouse team, they seem to keep a good balance. In a 2014 espnW piece, Huffman is said she is the less-regimented energy of the household and that Wambach would like it if Huffman slipped her "a daily itinerary under the door even when she's home."

But again, like any successful partnership, there's an equal yin-yang in this relationship. According to espnW, the couple's Portland home features bookshelves organized by color, which is, Wambach said, "all Sarah." There's nothing like the perfect spousal balance.

So, yes, Wambach and Huffman are adorable. And just nine days after RBG and her merry band of justices waved their justice wands (this happens, right?) in favor of gay marriage, Wambach and Huffman are here to prove that, gay or straight, we are better off with love in our lives.

Image: Fox Sports (1)