Christine Sinclair, one of the founding players for the National Women’s Soccer League’s Portland Thorns, announced Friday that she is retiring.
Sinclair will finish the season with the Thorns. Portland plans to honor her before its final home game of the regular season on Nov. 1.
The 41-year-old from Burnaby, B.C., retired from the Canadian national team last year, finishing his international career as the world’s leading scorer for men and women with 190 goals.
Sinclair is one of three active players in the National Women’s Soccer League who have played on the same team since the league’s inception in 2013.
She led Portland to the 2013, 2017 and 2022 NWSL Championships, the 2016 and 2021 NWSL Shield, as well as the 2021 NWSL Challenge Cup, 2021 Women’s International Champions Cup and 2020 NWSL Community Shield.
Sinclair scored his first goal for Portland on April 13, 2013, against FC Kansas City.
She announced her retirement through social media.
“It has been an honor to be a part of the Portland Thorns organization for the past 11 years – a club that has shown the world what is possible when we invest in women’s sport,” she wrote. “As I conclude this final ride, I want to say what a privilege it has been to represent this unique, beautiful, passionate city I will always call home.”
Sinclair also wrote that he “plans to continue to grow the games I love while inspiring the next generation.”
She scored 64 regular season goals for the team, ranking third on the league all-time list. She appeared in a Portland record 195 games, including 176 starts.
Sinclair has scored 79 goals in all competitions with the Thorns.
“Thorns FC is proud to honor the monumental career of our Christine Sinclair,” the Thorns said in a press release.
“As No. 12 hangs up her boots, we would like to thank her for her long-term commitment to our club and feel fortunate to have been able to witness the greatness and progress she has made for football in a global environment.”
City Hall | Sinclair looks back on his record-breaking career.
The all-time leading international scorer sits down with CBC Sports’ Andi Petrillo ahead of her final two games in a Canada uniform.
As a member of the Canadian national team, Sinclair won a gold medal at the Tokyo Olympics. She won bronze medals at both the 2012 and 2016 Olympics.
“Best thing ever,” Canada Soccer posted on social media platform X. “Congratulations to @sincy12 (X handle for Sinclair) on a fantastic club career. You inspired a generation and for that we are forever grateful.”
She is also one of only five players to have played in six Women’s World Cups and one of only three players to have scored in five World Cups. But the World Cup trophy eluded her.
Sinclair also won NCAA championships at the University of Portland in 2002 and 2005.
Newly formed Northern Super League side Vancouver Rise FC teased that Sinclair might take up a role at the club, posting a photo of her with the caption “Something BIG Coming Soon.”
“I still have the same passion as a little four-year-old growing up in Burnaby, BC, but as I hang up my cleats, I’m determined to channel that passion in a new way. To inspire people while continuing to grow the game I love. The next generation. ” Sinclair wrote.
Portland will face the Vancouver Whitecaps FC Girls Elite team in a CONCACAF W Champions Cup match at BC Place in Vancouver on October 15.
Sinclair’s stellar resume
- From 2004 to 2015, she won the Canadian Soccer Female Player of the Year award 14 times, 11 years in a row, and was the national team’s leading scorer for 16 years.
- In December 2019, he was named Canadian Soccer Player of the Decade. Steven Reed, then president of Canadian Soccer, called Sinclair “a once-in-a-generation athlete who has been at the heart of Canadian sport for more than 20 years.”
- In 2012, she won both the Lou Marsh Trophy (Canadian Player of the Year, now known as the Northern Star Award) and The Canadian Press Female Athlete of the Year.
- The veteran forward, who served as Canada’s flag bearer at the closing ceremony of the 2012 London Olympics, has been a finalist for the FIFA World Player of the Year award four times.
- He is the first football player to be awarded the Order of Canada and the first football player to have his name inscribed in Canada’s Hall of Fame.
- While at the University of Portland, she won the MAC Hermann Trophy as the best NCAA women’s soccer player.
- He won WPS club titles with FC Gold Pride and Western New York Flash in 2010 and 2011, and NWSL championships in 2013, 2017 and 2022 with Portland Thorns.
- Sinclair, who announced his retirement from international football, led Australia to a 1-0 win in his last match against Canada in a friendly match played in front of 48,112 hometown fans at Vancouver’s BC Place Stadium on December 5, 2023.
— The Canadian Press
