Christine Sinclair retires: Canada star to play to season's end - ESPN

Portland Thorns forward Christine Sinclair, the leading goal scorer in international soccer history, will retire at the end of the 2024 National Women's Soccer League season, she announced on Friday.

Sinclair's final regular-season game will be Nov. 1 against Angel City FC in Portland, where the Thorns will honor her career. Portland sits seventh in the standings, with the top eight teams making the NWSL playoffs this year.

«Portland, thank you will never be enough,» Sinclair wrote on Instagram. «Soccer has been my passion since I was four years old and it has taken me on a journey I could never have imagined. The game led me to making the most impactful decision of my life: to attend the University of Portland.

»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.

«I still have the same passion as that young 4-year-old growing up in Burnaby, BC, 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's 190 goals for Canada is the most for any player in men's or women's international soccer history. She retired from Canada duty at the end of 2023, ending a 20-year international career that included six World Cups and four Olympics, including two bronze medals and an Olympic gold medal in 2021.

In 2020, Sinclair eclipsed former United States forward Abby Wambach as the leading international scorer.

Portland has been home to Sinclair since the inaugural NWSL season in 2013, and she has been integral to making the Thorns a perennial contender and one of the most recognizable women's soccer teams globally.

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