Four women’s football legends are being celebrated as the latest inductees into the Barclays Women’s Super League Hall of Fame.
Alex Scott MBE, Gilly Flaherty, Rebecca Welch, and Steph Houghton MBE were unveiled as the latest selections across the WSL’s social media pages on Thursday. Their inductions will take place at a special Hall of Fame celebration event in the new year.
The Women’s Professional Leagues Limited (WPLL), the new company overseeing the WSL and Women’s Championship, described the quartet as ‘standout figures’ during their respective playing and officiating careers.
The first announcement, at 10:30 on Thursday morning, honored former Arsenal star Alex Scott.
Scott won 21 trophies with Arsenal during her 12 years at the club, including four Women’s League Cups, seven WFA Cups, one WSL league title, and one UEFA Women’s Champions League. She also had a spell abroad with Boston Breakers between 2009 and 2011 and was part of the Birmingham City squad between 2004 and 2005.
The former defender earned 140 caps for England and, since hanging up her boots, has established herself as a cornerstone of the BBC’s football coverage.
Her impressive broadcasting career has seen her make history as the first female pundit on Sky Sports Super Sunday, the first female presenter on Football Focus, and the first female to commentate for the BBC at a men’s FIFA World Cup.
Second in the day’s line-up of announcements was Gilly Flaherty, also ex-Arsenal.
Born in London, Flaherty kick-started her career with Millwall Lionesses before moving to Arsenal, where she spent a decade and won 17 trophies. Flaherty’s playing career also saw her play for Chelsea, West Ham United, and Liverpool.
The ex-defender retired from playing two years ago and now regularly carries out media duties across the women’s game.
An hour after the initial announcement, the WSL’s social media pages revealed the next inductee in the 2024 Hall of Fame cohort: refereeing trailblazer Rebecca Welch.
The 40-year-old from Washington, Tyne and Wear, made history for female referees by officiating Burnley vs Fulham in December 2023. This match marked her as the first female referee to work in the top flight of English men’s football.
She also officiated at some of football’s biggest international stages, including the 2022 UEFA Women’s EUROs, the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup, the 2024 UEFA Women’s Champions League Final, and, most recently, the Paris 2024 Olympics women’s football tournament, where she concluded the final game of her career as fourth official for the Gold Medal Match.
Welch now works with PGMOL as the manager of the Select Group Women’s Professional Game.
The final inductee announced was Manchester City and Lionesses legend Steph Houghton MBE.
Houghton began her career in Sunderland during her youth and later at Leeds Carnegie before kicking off her professional career with Arsenal. She won seven trophies in three years, and in 2014 made what would become an iconic move to Manchester City.
The former defender captained the Sky Blues for the entirety of her decade-long stay, lifting seven trophies and adding 138 appearances to her WSL tally. Last season, she ended her career with 178 WSL games and 23 goals.
On the international stage, Houghton sported the armband for England for eight years and now features regularly as a pundit for both the BBC and Sky Sports.
These four women will join a star-studded list of inductees in the Barclays Hall of Fame, including last year’s selections, Jill Scott MBE, Ellen White MBE, and Anita Asante.
The selection panel, consisting of former players, coaches, officials, journalists, and key figures from the women’s game, made the decision to add all four to the league’s iconic roster.
Featured image courtesy of Women’s Professional Game.