Portland Thorns midfielder Lindsey Horan has joined Lyon on loan until June 2023, the NWSL club has announced.
Horan has also signed a contract extension with the Thorns through to the 2025 season.
The 27-year-old, who was recently named the 2021 U.S. Soccer Female Player of the Year, will return to France after playing for PSG between 2012 and 2016.
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“I’d like to thank the club for allowing me to go on loan and have this opportunity to play in France,” Horan said in a Thorns press release.
“Being a Thorn is one of the most incredible things I’ve gotten a chance to feel during my time as a professional soccer player. While I am excited for this new experience, I take great pride in being a Portland Thorn. I am proud of this team’s success and I sincerely thank the club for making this happen.”
Thorns general manager Karina LeBlanc added: “When Lindsey signed her long-term contract with the Thorns in 2020 she came to us to discuss pursuing an opportunity to play in Europe, and we have honored that request. We are thrilled she has signed an extension with the Thorns to offset this loan spell and we can’t wait to welcome her back to Portland after her time abroad.”
What does it mean for the USWNT?
Horan makes her return to Europe after becoming a fixture for the U.S. women’s national team in recent years, culminating in her first U.S. Soccer Female Player of the Year award last year. She will jump right in to the mix for Lyon, which has its next match on January 29 in a massive Coupe de France Round of 16 against PSG. She could feature then, or in early February against Bordeaux in league play.
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Horan has earned 108 caps and scored 25 goals for the USWNT, and is now set to play in France until the 2023 World Cup kicks off in Australia and New Zealand.
The USWNT is back in action in mid-February for the SheBelieves Cup, which has a weakened field due to COVID-19 travel restrictions and the busy international calendar this year for European clubs.
Megan Rapinoe and Alex Morgan both previously spent time with Lyon, with Rapinoe there from 2013-2014 and Morgan there during the 2017 season.
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