Christine Sinclair confirms she’ll retire from pro soccer after season with NWSL Thorns

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.

Over 11 seasons she has scored a club record 64 goals with the team, ranking her third all-time in the league.

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.

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.

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.”

WATCH | Sinclair reflects on record-breaking career: