Sophie Scores Two-Year Arsenal Contract 19 June 2023
Year 11 student Sophie Harrison has recently been awarded a two-year contract with the Arsenal Women’s Super League (WSL) Academy U21 Squad, meaning she will play with the team until the end of the 2024-25 football season.
This follows an extremely successful year for Sophie, a centre midfielder, within the Arsenal U16 Regional Talent Club Academy team. The squad won both the league title and Youth FA Cup and were unbeaten in every competitive game they played over the season, earning them the title of ‘The Invincibles’ among the wider club.
On this past season, Sophie commented: “I’ve enjoyed it a lot and I’ve learnt so much. It’s been hard work but the people around me are really supportive – we had a great team ethos and we just clicked.”
The Arsenal WSL Academy aims to support talented female footballers in the next step on their elite player pathway, developing their sporting skills whilst still allowing them to continue with their education. Sophie will train four times a week, alongside matches against other teams in the WSL. She will also continue to study at BMS, undertaking A Levels in Biology, Chemistry and Geography.
This is an incredible and richly deserved opportunity for Sophie who has plans to play professionally within the WSL and one day, she hopes, for England.
Mrs Woodgate, Head of Girls’ Sport at BMS, added: “It is incredibly exciting to hear that Sophie has been offered a contract with the Arsenal U21s for the coming season. This is an outstanding achievement and a result of her continued commitment and dedication to balancing training and academic studies. Sophie is a role model to any student aspiring to reach an elite level in their sport: she has the work ethic, coachability, organisation and leadership qualities of a future star. Well done, we are very proud of her.”