Katie McCabe will leave Arsenal when her contract expires at the end of the 2025/26 season, bringing down the curtain on more than a decade in north London for the Republic of Ireland full-back.
The 30-year-old has made 305 appearances for Arsenal and scored 37 goals since joining in December 2015, a run that has delivered one FA Cup, one WSL title, three League Cups, one UEFA Women’s Champions League and one FIFA Champions Cup. She departs having won every available club trophy during her time at the club.
Clare Wheatley, Arsenal’s director of women’s football, said McCabe has made a significant and lasting contribution to the club’s history and success. Wheatley added that McCabe led with passion and commitment, gave everything for the badge and built a special bond with supporters, calling her a club legend.
For Arsenal, the departure closes the book on one of the defining figures of its modern women’s team. McCabe won the FA Cup at the end of the 2015/16 season after arriving from Ireland, spent 2017 on a successful loan at Glasgow City, then returned in 2018 and helped drive the next wave of success, including the 2017/18 League Cup and the 2018/19 WSL title. She was later voted Arsenal Player of the Season in 2020/21 and again in 2022/23.
Her influence extended well beyond club football. McCabe has earned 105 caps for the Republic of Ireland and scored 34 goals, captaining her country at its first World Cup in 2023. She also scored Ireland’s first World Cup goal, a direct corner against Canada, a moment that carried her name far beyond north London.
The timing adds weight to the move because McCabe is leaving after a final stretch of major silverware at Arsenal, including the UEFA Women’s Champions League in May 2025 and the FIFA Champions Cup in February 2026. Few players leave after touching every level of a club’s success. McCabe does.
The only thing missing from her Arsenal story is how the final chapter is written. She will remain available through the end of the 2025/26 season, giving Arsenal one more year with a captain-level presence before one of the club’s most decorated modern players walks away as a proven winner and, by the club’s own description, a legend.
