Football: Gulbrandsen signs with Gold Pride

California FC Gold Pride has announced that the team has signed Norwegian midfielder Solveig Gulbrandsen, who was selected by the Pride in the 2009 International Discovery Draft.

With this signing, Gulbrandsen becomes the first Norwegian player in WPS history.

"We are excited to welcome Solveig and her family to the Pride," said FC Gold Pride Head Coach Albertin Montoya. "Through the years, Gulbrandsen has asserted herself as one of Scandinavia's most respected players and one of Norway's most talented playmakers and finishers. Her experience, skills and leadership will help our team immensely. She is a great fit for our team system and our organization."

Gulbrandsen made her debut on the international stage in 1998 with Norway's Women's National Team. Now, at only 28 years old, her experience at the highest level of the game is unmatched in Norway. She is the most capped player on the Norwegian National Team's active roster with 139 caps which includes three World Cups (1999, 2003, 2007), two Olympic Games (2000, 2008), and three UEFA Women's Euro Tournaments (2001, 2005, 2009).

Gulbrandsen currently competes in Norway's Women's Premiere League (Toppserien) with Stabaek IF a club she joined in 2008.

Gulbrandsen, a native of Oslo, Norway, is married to Espen Andreassen, a former football trainer with Kolbotn women's football club. In June of 2008, the couple welcomed their first child, a son named Theodor. Solveig is the daughter of former Norway international footballer Terje Gulbrandsen and Inger Elise Johansen, a former Norwegian champion in Rhythmic Gymnastics.

(NRK/VG/Gold Pride)

Rolleiv Solholm

Monday, 14 December 2009 08:39