Rachel Williams (footballer)

This article is about the footballer. For other people, see Rachel Williams (disambiguation).

Rachel Williams

Williams playing for Manchester United in 2023
Personal information
Full name	Rachel Louise Williams [1]
Date of birth	(1988-01-10) 10 January 1988 (age 36) [2]
Place of birth	Leicester, England
Height	1.69 m (5 ft 7 in) [2]
Position(s)	Midfielder / Forward
Team information
Current team	Manchester United
Number	28
Youth career
	Linden Old Girls
	Leicester City
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
2004–2008	Leicester City
2008–2010	Doncaster Rovers Belles
2010	Leicester City
2011–2013	Birmingham City	35	(21)
2014	Chelsea	8	(2)
2015–2017	Notts County Ladies	28	(9)
2017–2020	Birmingham City	30	(5)
2020–2022	Tottenham Hotspur	34	(4)
2022–	Manchester United	38	(9)
International career‡
2010–2011	England U23
2009–2017	England	13	(4)
2012	Great Britain	1	(0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 18 May 2024 ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 7 March 2017

Rachel Louise Williams (born 10 January 1988) is an English professional footballer who plays as a forward for Manchester United of the English Women's Super League.

Before rejoining Birmingham City in May 2017, Williams spent 2 years at Notts County Ladies, one year at Chelsea Ladies and three years at her first spell at Birmingham City, where she was converted from an attacking midfielder to a striker. Williams made her senior England debut in July 2009 but had to wait two years for her next appearance, missing out on selection for Women's Euro 2009 and the 2011 Women's World Cup. She was selected in the Great Britain squad for the 2012 London Olympics.

Club career

Williams joined Leicester City Women as a twelve–year–old, progressing through their centre of excellence to play in their senior side. ^[3] She was vice–captain as the side won the County League in 2005. ^[4] and the following season was a member of the side that again won the County League, but also the County Cup. ^[5] In the 2006–07 season, Williams was a member of the Leicester side that won the treble of the East Midlands Women's Premier League title, the County Cup and the League Cup and promotion to the Midlands Combination League. ^[6] The following season she was part of the Leicester team that won promotion to the FA Women's Premier League Northern Division.

Williams (centre) at Doncaster in August 2011

She left Leicester at the end of the 2007–08 season to join Doncaster Rovers Belles. ^[3] She was the FA Premier League player of the month for October 2008, ^[3] and was a member of the Doncaster side that lost to Arsenal Ladies in the 2009 FA Women's Premier League Cup final. ^[7] She ended her first season with Doncaster as the club's Player of the Year and the Players' Player of the Year. ^[3]

Williams netted on the opening day of the 2009–10 season as Doncaster drew 1–1 at home to Blackburn Rovers Ladies. ^[8] In October 2009 she scored against former club Leicester City Women as Doncaster progressed in the Premier League Cup. ^[9]

With Doncaster not playing until the FA WSL in March 2011, Williams re–signed for Leicester City in summer 2010. ^[10] In December 2010, Williams was revealed to have signed for Birmingham City's FA WSL squad. ^[11] After converting to a striker, Williams made an impressive start to the new season with Birmingham, scoring five goals in her first two WSL appearances ^[12] and winning a recall to the England squad. ^[13]

Williams hit 14 goals in 14 games as Birmingham missed out on the WSL title on the final day. She was also voted 2011 Players' Player of the Year at The FA Women's Football Awards. ^[14] She scored an injury time equaliser against Chelsea Ladies in the 2012 FA Women's Cup Final, which Birmingham eventually won after a penalty shootout. ^[15]

In October 2013 Birmingham announced that Williams had departed the club "by mutual consent". ^[16] A transfer to Chelsea was made public on 6 November 2013. ^[17] She scored seven goals in 13 games across all competitions for Chelsea, who finished second in the 2014 FA WSL. In January 2015 she transferred to Notts County Ladies in her native Midlands. ^[18] Following the closure of Notts County Ladies before the 2017 Spring Series, Williams re-signed to Birmingham City in May 2017. ^[19]

In July 2022, Williams signed a two-year contract with Manchester United, reuniting with her former Birmingham manager Marc Skinner. ^[20]

International career

England

Williams scored on her England Under-19 debut, whilst still an Under-17 player, against Switzerland in 2005. ^[4] Later that year she was selected as part of the England squad for the UEFA Women's Under-19 Championship. ^[4]

In May 2009, Williams was one of the first 17 female players to be given central contracts by the Football Association. ^[21] At the time she was the only uncapped player to be awarded a contract. ^[22] Her debut for the England senior side came in July 2009 when she came on as a substitute for Alex Scott in the 2–0 defeat at home to Iceland. ^[23] She missed out on a place in the Women's Euro 2009 Squad, but was picked by head coach Hope Powell for England's squad to face Malta in the first qualifying game for the 2011 Women's World Cup. ^[24] Despite excellent form at club level, Williams was overlooked for the 2011 World Cup squad. ^[25]

Williams collected her second cap, more than two years after her first, when she replaced Natasha Dowie during half–time of a 2–2 Euro 2013 qualifying draw in Serbia. She scored her first international goal in the next qualifier against Slovenia, a 4–0 win at Swindon's County Ground in September 2011. ^[26] In June 2013 Williams was left out of Powell's squad for UEFA Women's Euro 2013.

Williams was allotted 171 when the FA announced their legacy numbers scheme to honour the 50th anniversary of England’s inaugural international. ^{[27] [28]}

International goals

Scores and results list England's goal tally first.

#	Date	Venue	Opponent	Result	Competition	Scored
1	22 September 2011	County Ground, Swindon	Slovenia	4–0	2013 UEFA Women's Championship Qual.	1
2	31 March 2012	Sajmište, Vrbovec	Croatia	6–0	2013 UEFA Championship Qual.	1
3	21 June 2012	Ob Jezeru, Velenje	Slovenia	4–0	UEFA Euro 2013 Qual.	1
4	8 March 2013	GSZ Stadium, Larnaca, Cyprus	Scotland	4–4	2013 Cyprus Cup	1

Great Britain Olympic

In June 2012 Williams was named in the 18–player Great Britain squad for the 2012 London Olympics. ^[29]

Personal life

Williams also works as a plasterer. ^[22]

Career statistics

Club

As of match played 18 May 2024 ^[30]

Appearances and goals by club, season and competition

Club	Season	League			National Cup [lower-alpha 1]		League Cup [lower-alpha 2]		Europe [lower-alpha 3]		Total
		Division	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Leicester City	2004-2005	Leicestershire County Leagues	?	?	?	?	?	?	—		?	?
	2005-06		?	?	?	?	?	?	—		?	?
	2006-07	East Midlands Premier League	?	?	?	?	?	?	—		?	?
	2007-08	Midland Combination	?	?	?	?	?	?	—		?	?
	Total		?	?	?	?	?	?	—		?	?
Doncaster Rovers Belles	2008-09	WPL	16	4	?	?	4	4	—		20	8
	2009-10		21	6	1	0	2	1	—		24	7
	Total		37	10	1	0	6	5	—		44	15
Leicester City	2010-11	WPL Northern Division	3	0	—		0	0	—		3	0
Birmingham City	2011	WSL	14	14	?	?	0	0	—		14	14
	2012		12	6	3	3	5	0	2	1	22	10
	2013		9	1	1	0	3	3	—		13	4
	Total		35	21	4	3	8	3	2	1	49	28
Chelsea	2014	WSL	8	2	2	1	2	3	—		12	6
Notts County	2015	WSL	14	6	3	0	8	4	—		25	10
	2016		14	3	2	2	2	0	—		18	5
	Total		28	9	5	2	10	4	—		43	15
Birmingham City	2017	WSL	5	2	0	0	0	0	—		5	2
	2017-18		15	3	2	0	4	0	—		21	3
	2018-19		0	0	0	0	0	0	—		0	0
	2019-20		10	0	1	0	4	4	—		15	4
	Total		30	5	3	0	8	4	—		41	9
Tottenham Hotspur	2020-21	WSL	12	0	3	2	0	0	—		12	0
	2021-22		22	4	1	0	3	2	—		26	6
	Total		34	4	4	2	3	2	—		38	6
Manchester United	2022–23	WSL	17	4	5	1	3	1	—		25	6
	2023–24		21	5	5	5	4	1	1	0	31	11
	Total		38	9	10	6	7	2	1	0	56	17
Career total			212	62	29	14	44	23	3	1	283	96

1. Includes the Women's FA Cup
2. Includes the WSL Cup/Women's League Cup & Women's National League Cup
3. Includes the UEFA Women's Champions League

International

Statistics accurate as of match played 7 March 2017. ^[30]

Year	England		Great Britain
	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
2009	1	0	-
2010	0	0	-
2011	3	1	-
2012	3	2	1	0
2013	4	1	-
2014	0	0	-
2015	0	0	-
2016	0	0	-
2017	2	0	-
Total	13	4	1	0

Honours

Leicester City

• Midland Combination Women's Football League: 2007–08
• Unison East Midlands Women's Premier League: 2006–07
• Unison East Midlands Premier League Cup: 2006–07
• Unison East Midlands Southern League Cup: 2005–06
• Leicestershire & Rutland County FA Cup: 2005–06, 2006–07, 2007–08
• Leicestershire County League: 2004–05

Birmingham City

• Women's FA Cup: 2011–12 ^[31]

Manchester United

• Women's FA Cup: 2023–24; ^[32] runner-up: 2022–23 ^[33]

Individual

• WSL Goal of the Month: January 2023 ^[34]
• FA Women's Players' Player of the Year: 2010–11 ^[35]
• Women's Super League Golden Boot: 2010–11 ^[36]
• FA WSL All Star Team: 2010–11
• Doncaster Player of the Year: 2008–09
• Doncaster Players' Player of the Year: 2008–09

References

1. "Player Statistics". FIFA. Archived from the original on 11 November 2012. Retrieved 13 October 2010.
2. "BBC Sport – London 2012 Olympics – Rachel Williams : Great Britain & N. Ireland, Football". 13 August 2012. Retrieved 12 September 2012.
3. "Rachel Williams (first team)". Doncaster Rovers Belles. Archived from the original on 31 August 2009. Retrieved 13 October 2009.
4. "Women are the Champions". Leicester City F.C. 21 April 2005. Retrieved 13 October 2009.
5. "Women grab silverware". Leicester City F.C. 7 April 2006. Retrieved 13 October 2009.
6. "LCFC Women finish in style". Leicester City F.C. 23 May 2007. Retrieved 13 October 2009.
7. Glenn Lavery (26 February 2009). "Arsenal life the cup". The Football Association. Retrieved 13 October 2009.
8. Tony Leighton (16 August 2009). "Promoted duo start with victories". BBC News. Retrieved 17 August 2009.
9. "Doncaster Belles too strong for Leicester City Women in Cup". Leicester Mercury. 5 October 2009. Retrieved 13 October 2009.^{[ permanent dead link ]}
10. "New Leicester boss strengthening squad". Women's Soccer Scene. 20 August 2010. Archived from the original on 16 December 2017. Retrieved 12 September 2010.
11. "Exciting Blues news!". She Kicks. 20 December 2010. Archived from the original on 26 July 2011. Retrieved 20 December 2010.
12. Tony Leighton (20 April 2011). "Birmingham crush Liverpool to lead Women's Super League". BBC Sport. Retrieved 21 April 2011.
13. "Williams delight at hat-trick". TheFA.com. 21 April 2011. Retrieved 21 April 2011.
14. "Rachel carries off top award". Women's Soccer Scene. 14 October 2011. Archived from the original on 22 January 2020. Retrieved 1 April 2012.
15. Nisbet, John (27 May 2012). "Shoot-out has unhappy ending for Chelsea Ladies". The Independent . Retrieved 8 February 2015.
16. "Carney commits". Birmingham City Ladies. 17 October 2013. Retrieved 6 November 2013.
17. "Rachel Williams joins Chelsea". She Kicks. 6 November 2013. Retrieved 6 November 2013.
18. "Rachel Williams: Chelsea Ladies forward joins Notts County". British Broadcasting Corporation. 5 January 2015. Retrieved 8 February 2015.
19. "Birmingham City Ladies: England forward Rachel Williams re-signs for WSL 1 club". BBC. 16 May 2017. Retrieved 21 October 2017.
20. "United Women sign Rachel Williams". Manchester United.
21. "England Women awarded contracts". BBC Sport. 14 May 2009. Retrieved 31 July 2009.
22. Tony Leighton (14 May 2009). "FA boosts England's women's team with central contracts". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 31 July 2009.
23. "England women 0–2 Iceland women". BBC Sport. 17 July 2009. Retrieved 31 July 2009.
24. "Women's squad named for Malta Qualifier". The Football Association. 1 October 2009. Retrieved 13 October 2009.
25. Hossack, Steve (27 July 2011). "Rachel should have been on World Cup stage". Sheffield Star. Retrieved 1 April 2012.
26. "POTY: Rachel Williams". The Football Association. 1 January 2012. Retrieved 1 April 2012.
27. "England squad named for World Cup". The Football Association. Retrieved 19 June 2023.
28. Lacey-Hatton, Jack (18 November 2022). "Lionesses introduce 'legacy numbers' for players past and present". mirror. Retrieved 19 June 2023.
29. "Team GB women's squad for London 2012 announced". BBC Sport. 26 June 2012. Retrieved 26 June 2012.
30. "England - R. Williams - Profile with news, career statistics and history - Soccerway".
31. "Birmingham win cup on penalties". BBC Sport. Retrieved 14 February 2023.
32. Sanders, Emma (12 May 2024). "Women's FA Cup final: Manchester United beat Tottenham to win first major trophy". BBC Sport. Retrieved 12 May 2024.
33. Wrack, Suzanne (14 May 2023). "Chelsea claim FA Cup hat-trick after Sam Kerr sees off Manchester United". The Guardian. ISSN   0261-3077 . Retrieved 29 November 2023.
34. "Williams wins WSL Goal of the Month". Manchester United F.C. 2 February 2023. Retrieved 2 February 2023.
35. "Williams re-signs for Birmingham Ladies". BBC Sport. Retrieved 14 February 2023.
36. "How the 2011 FA WSL season was won". The Football Association. Archived from the original on 9 October 2021. Retrieved 14 February 2023.

External links

• Rachel Williams at The Football Association website