If you attended a liberal arts college and had even a passing encounter with psychology, you likely are aware of Maslow’s hierarchy of needs.

It is a fascinating theory developed in the 1940s and 1950s by A. H. Maslow, that, in the simplest terms, suggests that human beings move through a continuum of needs from the most basic to high levels of self-actualization (be all you can be). In pedestrian terms, before you paint the Mona Lisa you need to have food, water, and a roof over your head.

In recent days there has been considerable debate about the World Cup collapse of the US Women’s National Soccer Team.  Many have suggested that the team got a bit over-confident and was distracted by misplaced efforts at political advocacy. That made me ponder if the Maslow model could be applied (imperfectly, for sure) to sports.

Maslow’s hierarchy has five levels.  The first is physiological needs: air, water, shelter – the very basics of survival. In the athletic area – we’ll use soccer as an example – you need some fundamental skills like dribbling, kicking, and running. These are the things a kid learns in local park district programs, something sometimes coached by a parent attending his first soccer match.

The second Maslow level involves safety needs: personal security, a job, property. For the soccer player, the analogy would be joining a team and playing in actual competition.

Third for Maslow comes love and belonging, including friendship, family, and a sense of community. For the soccer player, this means developing teamwork on the team, being a key player, being a starter, being connected to something that is beyond individual talent.

Esteem comes fourth in the Maslow hierarchy. This means status, recognition, and an elevated sense of self. For the soccer player, this might mean being named to the all-star team, generating positive newspaper stories, getting a scholarship to play in college, being drafted for the pros, even getting your picture on a box of Wheaties.

The final level in the hierarchy is self-actualization, which encompasses being the best version of yourself possible, experiencing spiritual fulfillment, and a sense that your life has made a real difference.

As for the soccer player, this final level offers great opportunities for good – and foolishness. The American soccer stars proved how the promise of level five in the hierarchy can prove hollow.

The American soccer women had, as a team and as individuals, reached level four of the hierarchy. The team won the last two world cups.  Players’ pictures were everywhere, and commentators said they had a good chance for a three-peat.

Instead, they played poorly and made a point to show disrespect during the playing of the national anthem. In short, they misused the fame of level four in immature, inappropriate ways.

Soccer players (and most other athletes) almost always get into trouble when they use their prominent position for social or political advocacy. Actors get into the same trouble.

In the case of the women’s team, one of the stars used her fame to advocate for gay rights and equal pay for female athletes with male athletes. She proudly picked controversial issues to champion, perhaps naively thinking it would make people respect her. Instead, it made at least half the people dislike her.

What was her alternative? The 6^th chapter of Matthew has a suggestion in verses 3-4:

But when you give alms, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your alms may be done in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you.

That’s right; do good deeds quietly and don’t issue a press release whenever you have an opinion about some political or social issue. Remember that you are a soccer player who only has a public platform because you can kick a ball down the field and people like it when you win for THEIR team.

Soccer players, both male and female, eventually get too old to compete. They will be remembered, provided they achieved some level of fame, according to how they lived the 5^th level of the hierarchy. If they spent their retirement years endowing scholarships, visiting children in hospitals, and speaking at fundraisers for those in need, they will produce happy memories in their fans.

On the other hand, if the last thing the one-time fans remember is that the soccer star spit on the American flag and whined about her paycheck, it likely won’t bear fond memories.

True self-actualization isn’t really about self but what the self can do for others.