There will never be another Christine Sinclair. And you’re running out of time to watch the Canadian soccer icon play for Canada.

Canada Soccer announced on Friday that over 35,000 tickets have been sold for CanWNT’s December 5 friendly against Australia at BC Place, in what will be an emotional send-off game for the Burnaby native.

Related read: Canadian soccer supporters group The Voyageurs planning send-off tribute for Christine Sinclair in Vancouver

Canada will face Australia twice in BC, with the Vancouver finale following Sinclair’s penultimate international match on Vancouver Island and Victoria’s Starlight Stadium, the home of the Canadian Premier League’s Pacific FC.

“The national support for our Women’s National Team has always been extraordinary, and as of late, that tremendous fandom has resulted in four straight home match sellouts,” said Canada Soccer Interim General Secretary Jason de Vos in a statement emailed to Canadian media members. “This will be the largest attendance of the fall series of matches, and I encourage everyone who wants to join us in sending off a Canadian icon to secure their seats quickly.” 

Sinclair is globally considered one of the greatest players of all time, and is international soccer’s all-time leading goal-scorer having netted 190 goals in over 300 caps for Canada. Sinclair led Canada to two Olympic bronze medals in 2012 and 2016 and was part of Bev Priestman’s side that finally won that elusive Olympic gold medal at the pandemic-delayed Tokyo 2020 Games.

“The opportunity for Canadian fans to come together to celebrate our team and take in all of the celebrations planned for our match in Vancouver, will be a moment to remember,” added Priestman, in the Canada Soccer statement.

It was Australia that embarrassingly eliminated Canada on matchday 3 of the group stage at this past summer’s Women’s World Cup. The Matildas went on to have their best-ever World Cup finish, losing in the semi-finals to England before finishing fourth. Both teams are among the top-ranked in the world. Canada is currently ranked 7th, while Australia is ranked 11th according to the latest FIFA Women’s World Rankings.

The two-game Sinclair send-off series against Australia will also serve as crucial preparation for the Canadian team ahead of the 2024 Paris Olympics, which CanWNT qualified for by winning a thrilling two-legged qualifying tie against Jamaica in the September international window.

Tickets for the match in Vancouver are still available but Starlight Stadium sold out in eight minutes last month.