Christine Sinclair confirms she'll retire from pro soccer after season with NWSL's Thorns
Anne M. Peterson | The Associated Press | Posted: September 27, 2024 4:45 PM | Last Updated: September 27
She ended international career in 2023 as world's top goal-scorer among women, men
Christine Sinclair, one of the founding players for the Portland Thorns in the National Women's Soccer League, announced Friday she's retiring from the game.
Sinclair will finish out the season with the Thorns. Portland plans to honour her before the final regular season home game on Nov. 1.
The 41-year-old from Burnaby, B.C., retired from the Canadian national team last year, finishing her international career as the world's top goal scorer among both women and men with 190 goals.
Sinclair is among just three active players in the National Women's Soccer League who have played for the same team since the league launched in 2013.
She has led Portland to the NWSL championship in 2013, 2017 and 2022, the NWSL Shield in 2016 and 2021, as well as the 2021 NWSL Challenge Cup, 2021 Women's International Champions Cup and 2020 NWSL Community Shield.
Sinclair scored Portland's first-ever goal in a match against FC Kansas City on April 13, 2013.
She announced her retirement on social media.
"For the last 11 years it has been an honour to be part of the Portland Thorns organization. The club that showed the world what is possible when women's sports are invested in," she wrote. "As I finish out this last ride, I want to say what a privilege it has been to represent this unique, beautiful and passionate city that I will always call home."
Sinclair also wrote that she plans to continue "growing the game that I love while inspiring the next generation."
She has scored a Thorns-record 64 regular-season goals with the team, ranking her third all-time in the league. She has played in a Portland-record 195 games, including 176 starts.
Sinclair has 79 goals across all competitions with the Thorns.
"Thorns FC is proud to honour the monumental career of our very own Christine Sinclair," the Thorns said in a news release.
"As No. 12 hangs up the boots, we thank her for her long-term commitment to our club and consider ourselves lucky to be able to witness the greatness and progress she created for soccer on a global landscape."
WATCH | Sinclair reflects on record-breaking career:
With the Canadian national team, Sinclair won a gold medal at the Tokyo Olympics. She won bronze medals at both the 2012 and 2016 Games.
"Christine, your achievements both on and off the field have set a new standard in Canadian sport," Canada Soccer said in a statement. "You've paved the way for future generations, leaving behind a legacy that will continue to shape the future of soccer in Canada and around the world.
"Thank you for the unforgettable moments, for lifting Canadian soccer to new heights, and for your unwavering commitment to the game."
She is also among just five players to appear in six Women's World Cups, and one of just three players to score in five. But a World Cup trophy eluded her.
Sinclair also won NCAA championships with the University of Portland in 2002 and 2005.
Vancouver Rise FC of the newly formed Northern Super League has teased that Sinclair may take on a role with the club, posting a photo of her with the caption "Something BIG coming soon."
"I still have the passion as that young four-year-old growing up in Burnaby, B.C., but as I hang up my playing boots, I vow to channel it in a new way. To continue growing the game I love while inspiring the next generation," Sinclair wrote.
Portland is scheduled to play the Vancouver Whitecaps FC Girls Elite team in a CONCACAF W Champions Cup match at B.C. Place in Vancouver on Oct. 15.
Sinclair resumé
- Has won Canada Soccer's female player of the year 14 times, including a stretch of 11 straight years from 2004 to 2015, and led the national team in scoring 16 years.
- In December 2019, named the Canada Soccer player of the decade. Steven Reed, Canada Soccer's then-president, called Sinclair "a once-in-a-generation athlete that has been at the heart of Canadian sport for over 20 years."
- In 2012, won both the Lou Marsh Trophy (Canadian athlete of the year, now known as the Northern Star Award) and The Canadian Press female athlete of the year award.
- Canada's flag-bearer at the London Olympics' closing ceremony in 2012, the veteran forward is a four-time finalist for FIFA world player of the year.
- The first soccer player appointed as an Officer of the Order of Canada, and the first to have her name engraved on Canada's Walk of Fame.
- Won the M.A.C. Hermann Trophy as the top NCAA women's soccer player while at the University of Portland.
- Won WPS club titles with FC Gold Pride and the Western New York Flash in 2010 and 2011, and the NWSL championship in 2013, 2017 and 2022 with the Portland Thorns.
- After announcing her retirement from international soccer, Sinclair played her final game with Canada, a 1-0 win over Australia in a friendly in front of 48,112 hometown fans at Vancouver's B.C. Place Stadium on Dec. 5, 2023.
— The Canadian Press