Christine Sinclair’s induction into the Thorns Hall of Fame was just made a bit sweeter. The Thorns announced on Sept. 17 that in addition to her induction, Sinclair’s No. 12 will be the first jersey in club history to be retired.
On the heels of Alex Morgan’s jersey retirement, Sinclair will be the sixth NWSL player to be honored in this way, but she’s the first international player to get number retirement treatment. Sinclair joins the ranks of Morgan, Megan Rapinoe (Seattle Reign), Lauren Holiday (Kansas City), Leslie Osborne (Boston Breakers), Lori Chalupny (Chicago Stars), and Joanna Lohman (Washington Spirit).
For 12 years, Sinclair was the prototype for the Thorns. She helped the team to three NWSL Championships, two NWSL Shields, and the 2021 NWSL Challenge Cup. Her 79 goals across all NWSL competitions is still the most in club history and second most in league history.
She holds club records for games played (237), games started (215), total minutes played (18,579), and converted penalty kicks across all competitions (13).
Sinclair went to six-straight FIFA Women’s World Cup tournaments with Team Canada and four-straight Summer Olympics, closing it out with a gold medal in 2021. In 331 appearances for Team Canada, Sinclair put up 190 goals, the most international goals by a male or female, and notched 54 assists.
This legendary output earned her eight FIFA World Player of the Year nominations and 14 Canada Women’s Soccer Player of the Year honors.
The ceremony will take place before Portland’s match against Bay FC at 7 p.m. PT. Fans can purchase tickets here.
