Former Portland Thorns goalkeeper announced as new general manager

By Web Staff

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    PORTLAND, Oregon (KPTV) — The Portland Thorns FC have appointed former Thorns goalkeeper and current Head of Women’s Football for Concacaf, Karina LeBlanc, as the team’s new general manager it was announced Monday.

LeBlanc, 41, will be responsible for the overall management of the technical soccer operations of the club, reporting directly to owner and CEO Merritt Paulson. She will also serve as the central leader for Thorns FC on all soccer aspects. The Thorns organization said in a news release LeBlanc will also have an “integral voice” on key business decisions related to the club, “helping to create, cultivate and manage the culture of Thorns FC.”

The appointment follows the Oct. 6 administrative leave former general manager Gavin Wilkinson was placed under pending results of an outside investigation. The investigation began with sexual abuse allegations against former Thorns coach Paul Riley.

“I could not be more excited to welcome Karina back to Portland,” said Thorns FC owner and CEO Merritt Paulson. “The global soccer network she has fostered during her career has perfectly positioned her to lead the Thorns, and it is hard to think of anyone with a more innate leadership ability and unique blend of skills than Karina.”

Since 2018, LeBlanc has been the Head of Women’s Football for Concacaf where she has overseen the efforts of 41 confederations across North America, Central America and the Caribbean Islands. The Thorns FC said LeBlanc has focused on developing women’s soccer throughout the region by increasing opportunities across multiple areas which include grassroots and competitions platforms, coaching initiatives and administration. She launched the Women’s Football strategy in 2019 and was a key part and voice of the Concacaf’s new women’s ecosystem.

“When I left in 2014, I felt there was unfinished business for me here. The way the community, the club and the team made me feel, was something that I would never forget,” LeBlanc said in a news release. “I thought I might come back as a player, but never in my wildest dreams did I think that I would be coming back as the general manager of what is for me, the greatest club in the world. My experience as a Thorn helped shape me into the woman I am today.”

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