Olympic gold medalist Trinity Rodman might be the daughter of a legendary athlete, but the U.S. women's soccer star revealed she spent years not hearing from her father, Dennis Rodman.
The 22-year-old waded into what she described as "new territory" by discussing her family in an interview on the "Call Her Daddy" podcast Wednesday.
Trinity Rodman, who at 18 became the youngest player drafted into the National Women's Soccer League and was essential to the Washington Spirit's championship win in her rookie year, is a rising star in the soccer world.
She skyrocketed into a household name this summer when she helped the U.S. bring home its first gold medal in women's soccer since the London 2012 Summer Olympics.
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But "Rodman" is not exactly an unknown name to sports fans.
Dennis Rodman was a five-time NBA champion, winning three of those with the Chicago Bulls in the 1990s alongside Michael Jordan. At the height of his fame, the forward developed a rebellious reputation with an unconventional style and outlandish antics.
To Trinity Rodman, however, he was an absentee father who abandoned his family both emotionally and financially, she said.
Soccer
"I think in terms of the dad situation — in terms of what I've filtered and what I've talked about — I feel like me and my brother have been very generous with the way that we've talked about it and very unselfish," she said.
Dennis Rodman did not respond to NBC News' requests for comment Wednesday.
She and her older brother, DJ, were born during Dennis Rodman's relationship to Michelle Moyer, but the couple separated when Trinity Rodman was still a toddler. The divorce was drawn out from 2004 to 2012. Trinity Rodman said that her mother struggled with money and that her father barely give them enough to pay rent.
For a time, Moyer and her children were homeless.
"Imagine living in a car going to a rich school; it was the most weird thing," she said. "We were living in car, but then we could afford to stay in a motel for a little bit, so we were kind of back and forth."
Dennis Rodman gave a tearful speech in 2011 when he was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, saying he himself never had a father. He seemingly expressed some contrition over being a bad husband and a bad father.
“I have one regret, I wish I was a better father,” he said.
During some periods, Trinity Rodman said she saw her father only three or four times a year, even though they both lived in the same city.
"Even now, I'm trying to be honest about it, and I'm still giving him sympathy," she said. "Which is frustrating for me because in reality, I think he's an extremely selfish human being. I think everything has always been about him."
Trinity Rodman recalled bursting into angry tears during her NWSL quarterfinal match in 2021 when she realized her father — who she hadn't spoken to in months — showed up unannounced. She said she cried her eyes out in the locker room during halftime before getting back on the field to win the game.
"The whistle blew and I was so mad," she said. "Like you took this happy moment from me."
The two spoke after the game in what she described as a pretty "wholesome" catch-up, with her father even saying he wanted to see her more, the soccer star said. But she didn't see or talk to him until sometime in the last year.
Trinity Rodman posted to her Instagram about her complicated relationship with him after the game, adding in Wednesday's podcast that she wanted to be positive and feel grateful that he showed up at all. That was offset, she said, by the months of silence that followed.
"I think after that was when I lost hope in ever getting him back, it was just going to be like, he's popping in whenever he wants to be in a camera," she said. "And even at that game, I don't think that was for me. I think he wanted to have a good conscience and then be like, headline, Dennis Rodman showed up to his daughter's game."
She said hearing his voice is painful. The 22-year-old added that she will answer when he phones, but that the "random" calls are awful for her.
"He's not a dad," Trinity Rodman said. "Maybe by blood but nothing else."
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