Manchester City are actively pursuing a deal for the England winger.
Beth Mead is set to leave Arsenal when her contract expires this summer, with Manchester City leading the chase to sign the England winger. The Athletic reported last month that there was growing expectation City, the newly crowned Women’s Super League champions, would secure Mead’s signature before the end of the season.
At the time of writing, no agreement had been reached, and official contracts cannot be signed until June 1 due to rules preventing clubs from approaching players under contract with teams in the same association. However, sources within City are optimistic that a transfer will be completed.
Arsenal confirmed on Monday that Mead, 31, will leave the club at the end of the season, bringing an end to nine years with the north London side. During her time at Arsenal, the England international made 265 appearances and scored 86 goals, helping the club win one WSL title, three League Cup titles, one FIFA Champions Cup, and the 2025 Champions League.
Mead was one of three departures announced by Arsenal on Monday, along with defender Laia Codina and midfielder Victoria Pelova, as the club prepares for a busy summer transfer window.
She joined Arsenal from Sunderland in 2017, already known for her goalscoring ability after winning the 2015 WSL Golden Boot at just 20 years old. At Arsenal, Mead established herself as one of England’s top wingers and played a key role in the national team’s 2022 European Championship victory, earning UEFA Player of the Tournament and Golden Boot honors. Her performances also earned her the BBC Women’s Footballer of the Year, England’s Player of the Year, and BBC Sports Personality of the Year 2022.
An anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury sustained in November 2022 forced her to miss the 2023 Women’s World Cup, but Mead returned to full fitness in time to play a crucial part in Arsenal’s 1-0 Champions League final win over Barcelona the following season. She provided the assist for Stina Blackstenius’ match-winning goal. That summer, she helped England successfully defend their European Championship title.
This season, Mead played a key role in Arsenal’s run to the Champions League semi-finals and their qualification for Europe, despite some questions about her playing time following the club’s record-breaking £1 million signing of Canada winger Olivia Smith last summer. In the Women’s Super League, she has scored two goals and provided five assists, while in the Champions League, she has three goals and three assists.
Mead returned to the Arsenal team against Brighton & Hove Albion on May 6 after a period away for personal reasons. Her partner, Vivianne Miedema, who plays for City and has also been absent, revealed after City won the title that her absence was due to her mother experiencing serious complications after chemotherapy for cancer.
On 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.”