Thorns dismiss Rob Gale as head coach

The Portland Thorns have fired Rob Gale after nearly two seasons as the club’s head coach. Gale took over for Mike Norris on April 15, 2024, and led the club to a 22-17-10 regular season record through the end of this season. First assistant Adam Day has also exited the Thorns.

“We are grateful to Rob for his dedication to the Thorns and the positive influence he has had on our players and staff,” Thorns General Manager Jeff Agoos said in a statement. “We thank Rob for his contributions and wish him the best in his next endeavor.”

Sarah Lowdown, who twice served as interim head coach for the Houston Dash, will serve in that role for the Thorns while a coaching search commences.

The Thorns qualified for the playoffs in both of Gale’s seasons at the helm. After losing to Gotham in the 2024 quarterfinals, the club did one better in ’25 by beating the Wave in an extra-time quarterfinal. Their season ended two weekends ago in a 2-0 loss to the Washington Spirit.

Following the semifinal loss in Washington, Gale lamented the number of injuries sustained by the club during the season and said the semifinal was “one game too many.”  Sam Coffey though, pushed back on that notion.

“It’s not a slight to Rob, but I think that’s a bit of a copout,” Coffey said. “I think we were just outplayed, and it’s absolutely going to be a big lesson going forward, continuing to play in big games. Going forward, we need to be more composed and be able to kind of ride the different elements of the game that presented themselves today.”

It will not be Gale who shepherds the Thorns into their next big game. They join Bay FC and Kansas City Current as NWSL sides with coaching vacancies. The Courage continue to operate with interim Nathan Thackaray in charge after dismissing Sean Nahas over the summer.