After nine seasons, one WSL title, three League Cups, one FIFA Champions Cup and one UEFA Women’s Champions League, Beth Mead will call time on her Arsenal career at the end of the season.
Since joining the Gunners from Sunderland in 2017, Mead, now 31, has racked up 284 appearances in red and white, notching 86 goals.
In what was her penultimate showing for the North London club – and last match for Arsenal at the Emirates – Mead started in Wednesday’s 1-0 win over Everton, with her scheduled departure already public knowledge.
She left the field to a standing ovation in the second half and watched from the bench as Stina Blackstenius struck late to earn Arsenal all three points.
“I’m glad we won,” she told Arsenal media afterwards. “We left it pretty late, so I’m happy we got the three points. It’s still important.
“I’m always going to care about this team, so I want to leave them in the best place that I possibly can. Obviously, super emotional. I’m very honoured to walk off the pitch and get the reception that I did. The fans have been amazing.
“I tried to keep it together the best that I could, but I’ve been here a long time. I care about the club. I care about the people. I feel very honoured to have represented this club for so long and this badge. Yeah, I’m going to miss it.”
Mead was unlucky not to mark the occasion with a goal, twice striking the woodwork.
“I know,” she joked. “I was calling myself a postwoman! I hit the post a few times, but it wasn’t meant to be tonight.”
The win saw Arsenal rise above Chelsea to second in the Women’s Super League, setting up an important final day clash against Liverpool this weekend.
For Beth Mead, that’ll mark her last to don the Arsenal badge before her contract expires in the summer and she ultimately heads to pastures new.
“Three points is the aim for Anfield,” she continued. “It’s a very nice stadium to play in. Hopefully, we can play some good football and finish the season on a high.”
Beth Mead Leaves North London a Legend
Beth Mead’s Arsenal career has been nothing short of extraordinary. Having become the WSL’s youngest Golden Boot winner with Sunderland at the age of 20, the Gunners quickly moved to secure her services.
Mead’s undeniable talents quickly translated to her new team, as she helped Arsenal lift the League Cup and WSL titles in her first two seasons.
It wasn’t long before she was showcasing her eye for goal on the international stage.
After coming close to a FIFA Women’s World Cup final with England in 2019, Mead enjoyed the tournament of her life as the Lionesses were crowned European Champions for the first time in 2022.
Arsenal’s No.9 picked up the UEFA Player of the Tournament and Golden Boot awards, before being named BBC Women’s Footballer of the Year and England’s Player of the Year.
Her time at Arsenal wasn’t without its complications. Mead sustained ruptured anterior cruciate ligament injury in late 2022 while at the peak of her powers.
Following a long road to recovery, she returned in the early weeks of the 2023/24 season, adding another League Cup winners’ medal to her collection in the spring.
One of Beth Mead’s finest moment in an Arsenal shirt came in the final game of the 2024/25 campaign, as she stepped off the bench to help Arsenal win a second Champions League against Barcelona in Lisbon.
Just seven minutes after her introduction, Mead delivered an incisive pass to setup the winner in a 1-0 victory and bring European silverware back to North London for the first time in 18 years.
A second Euros title followed with England a few months later, before a FIFA Women’s Champions Cup win in February 2026 marked her final piece of silverware collected with Arsenal.
Beth Mead was officially appointed a Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) in the King’s first New Year’s Honours in 2023 for her services to football.
Honouring a Great
Speaking on Beth Mead’s departure, Arsenal’s Director of Women’s Football, Clare Wheatley, said: “Beth has made a huge contribution to our football club over nine years, and will go down in history as one of our best forwards and a legend of the club.
“Beth is such a special person and will always be welcome at Arsenal. I know our supporters will join me in wishing Beth happiness and success in her future endeavours.”
Beth Mead will leave Arsenal when her contract expires this summer.
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