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PORTLAND, Ore. (KATU) — It’s an exciting time for women’s sports in Portland. A WNBA team is coming to the Rose City in 2026. Plus, the Thorns’ home opener game against Angel City is March 21. For Women’s History Month, KATU is highlighting a female sports executive at the forefront of this significant moment for women’s sports.
“We need you to buy tickets, buy the merch, show the world that this is the global epicenter of women’s sports,” said Karina LeBlanc, a retired professional soccer player for Canada and a slew of American teams.
In her 18-year career, LeBlanc participated in five World Cups and two Olympic games. Still, she says nothing compares to playing for the Portland Thorns.
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“I still remember walking through those doors on game day and just being like, it felt like a World Cup [or] Olympics and that’s the way Portland’s always been,” she said. “Portland’s been about showing up for the players, being there for the players. So when the players are looking in the stands, they see someone who cares about them, who’s passionate about them and wants them to succeed. That’s what makes Portland unique.”
Even after she stopped playing, she couldn’t quite get away from the game.
“I realize at some point that this game was a platform to do something and I always wanted to connect to people,” LeBlanc explained. “I always wanted to matter in the right way.”
She extended her love for the game in 2018 by accepting the role as head of FIFA’s Confederation of North, Central America and Caribbean Association Football (CONCACAF). It’s one of FIFA’s six continental governing bodies for association football. She did the same in 2021, as the General Manager for the Portland Thorns.
“I think this club changed the trajectory of women’s soccer in this country because of our fan base and our players,” she said.
Now, as the Executive Vice President of Strategic Growth at the sports firm “RAJ Sports,” she’s heading up the effort to bring the WNBA to Portland.
She said that Portland’s WNBA team may not have a name, but they have more than 8,000 season deposits. See how you can get yours HERE.
However, she said her greatest achievement has nothing to do with sports. In 2020, LeBlanc gave birth to her daughter, Paris.
“When I gave birth to my daughter, I had heart failure and it was one of those things I say where it happened for me and not to me,” she shared. “It helps me become a better mother, but it also reminded me that she’s my why and everything I do, every single day of my life, is to be her SHE-ro.”
LeBlanc hopes she can be a SHE-ro to her daughter and other little girls out there to remind them of what’s possible on and off the field.
