Lindsey Horan Accelerates the Future of Women's Soccer

The United States women’s national team captain breaks down her newest partnership with Boardroom.

She may be the captain of the United States women’s national team, but Lindsey Horan is just like the rest of us. The 29-year-old told Boardroom that she first became aware of Accelerator Active Energy while scrolling TikToks of one of her favorite athletes, Travis Kelce. She noticed that the Chiefs’ tight end was always toting a familiar beverage as he made his way to the locker room each week.

Quickly, the product became part of her pregame routine, so much so that Horan labeled her commitment to it a “superstition” and had the company send it across the pond, where she plays with Lyon. Now, Horan has joined Accelerator Active Energy as an ambassador, teaming up with the likes of LSU gymnast Olivia “Livvy” Dunne, Peloton instructor and Nike athlete Tunde Oyeneyin, and YouTuber Deestroying. When asked about the partnership, Horan signaled her excitement to link with a product she believed in, “You want to believe in what you’re putting in your body and what you’re putting out to the world.”

Boardroom sat down with the star to discuss her new partnership, the state of women’s soccer, and much more.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

Bernadette Doykos: Tell me a bit about this new partnership and how it came to be.

Lindsey Horan: It’s amazing. I’m so happy. It’s funny, I learned about Accelerator just from watching Travis Kelce’s reels all the time. So seeing nonstop carrying one into the stadium, I was very curious of what it was and whatnot. And then when I heard about it and then when it came about with my agents, I was actually so stoked… [I}t was something that I was actually very interested in. … I like to work with brands that I actually believe in and that I actually use. So that was probably the biggest benefit.

BD: Hydration is just one part of maintaining the system of being an elite athlete. What are some other key things that keep you in peak condition?

LH: I think now you get older and you get more experienced with exactly what you need each day, training, game day, et cetera. You finally fine tune all these things. For me, if I don’t have my caffeine, I’m screwed. So again, why Accelerator is massive for me … I think we have such a difficult schedule sometimes. It’s just the travel nonstop and training every single day and getting ready for games and sometimes three games in one week. And obviously it’s also electrolytes and getting my protein in and just everything that I put in my body I think is super important. But to make sure that everything I’m putting in is to help me with my performance on the field.

BD: In the past, you’ve discussed the differences between the NWSL and European football, and one of the things that you pointed out was just the difference in the culture and the sport in Europe, just more generally. What are some things that you feel contribute to that difference? And as the NWSL is growing, are you seeing some of that investment happening stateside as well?

LH: It’s so difficult to really pinpoint anything because both leagues and leagues all over the world, they’re difficult and you find difficult things in each one. And I think the NWSL just started yesterday. I was watching these games and it was just like they all looked so hard, and the physical attributes of each one of those games is just so difficult.

When I think of the culture here in France, everything is just about football, about soccer, and in America, it’s a little bit different. You have so many sports and so many sports that people support. And I think now that one people are more invested in NWSL. People are watching it. I’ve watched all these games from France yesterday, which is massive because I don’t know if I would’ve been able to do that two years ago or whatever.

So there’s the investment that you see and the more you watch, the more you contribute, the more you invest what’s going to make the league even that much better. And then it becomes a very football culture. You have that with baseball, with basketball, with American football. Here in Europe, it’s about soccer. And I think that’s why people just live and breathe it.

BD: How are you feeling about the USWNT, especially coming off that huge win last week and just about the squad as it’s starting to come together and with a new coach on the horizon as well?

LH: Yeah, I think this last month together has been crucial for us. We went through everything you could possibly go through as a team during this tournament and without our head coach. So that’s always going to be difficult. But I think we’re doing really great, and Twila’s done a good job as the interim manager.

I honestly think the games that we just went through, the Colombia game, the Mexico game, the semifinal against Canada, which was not a game, but you got to see every bit of a match that you could possibly endure. And then that kind of preparation, getting me ready for another major tournament is just so crucial.

I was really, really proud of our team and how we came out of that and how we went on to win. And so I think that experience just in itself puts you in a really good place moving forward and being able to experience every one of those little things. So yeah, I was really, really proud of the team and we keep moving forward.

We have She Believes coming up…we have just another few camps before the Olympics, but I think we’re in a good place right now and obviously Emma will be with us in May, so that’s really exciting to get her feet on the ground in the US and take over this team.

BD: How do you look at the growth of the women’s game right now and where it is, especially for US athletes?

LH: It’s massive. I think the one thing that’s very noticeable is how many youngsters you’re seeing in the NWSL. … it’s showing there’s a different pathway and a different route, which is one that’s familiar for me and Mal [Swanson] and Sophia Smith, etc. But it is just showing some of the best players that are coming through have a different route and have a different ability to go play professionally early on.

I do wish that there’s more investment in our youth national teams, and I think that’s been something that’s needed for a while. I don’t remember the last time we won a youth national team tournament for the US, and that’s where I get frustrated because I want us to be better and to grow. And I think that’s how it filters through into our full team.

And maybe with the new faces in US soccer, that’s going to help.