- Christiansen has been in charge of Los Canaleros since 2020
- His debut in CONMEBOL Copa América™ as coach of Panama will be against Uruguay on Sunday, June 23 at the Hard Rock Stadium in Miami, Florida.
Former Spanish national team player (born in Denmark), Thomas Christiansen, will be tasked with leading Los Canaleros in this year's CONMEBOL Copa América™.
Looking ahead to the 48th edition of the oldest national team tournament in the world, Panama and Christiansen arrive with good momentum. In 2023, they finished as runners-up in the CONCACAF Gold Cup, tying their best finish in the tournament. Panama also qualified directly for the CONMEBOL Copa América™ by defeating Costa Rica 6-1 on aggregate during the CONCACAF Nations League quarterfinals.
Christiansen himself was born in Hadsund, Denmark, on March 11, 1973. His mother was of Spanish origin and, after making a breakthrough in FC Barcelona's B team, he would represent Spain in the national team. The most successful stage of his career would come in the Bundesliga, where in the 2002-03 season he finished tied for the league's top scorer award while playing for VfL Bochum.
After his playing days, he landed his first coaching jobs on the island of Cyprus, managing AEK Larnaca and APOEL, winning the league title with APOEL during the 2016-17 season. He would then move to English side Leeds United, where he would remain for half a season before joining Union SG in Belgium. After finishing his time in Belgium, he joined the Panama National Team as a coach in 2020.
During this year's CONMEBOL Copa América™, his Panama team will be tested against the United States, Uruguay and Bolivia as they look to exit the group stage of the tournament for the first time in their second appearance.
