The Extraordinary Journey of Mary Earps

Sophie Hurst
Apr 8
6 min read

Next Tuesday, April 14th, the Wembley arch will glow a little brighter. As the Lionesses take to the pitch for their World Cup qualifier against Spain, the atmosphere won’t just be about the points on the line; it will be about a homecoming for a legend. Mary Earps, the woman who redefined what it means to be a modern goalkeeper, is being honoured pre-match to commemorate an international career that has been as much about resilience as it has been about world-class saves.

Though we know Mary is still playing for club, currently at PSG, her international retirement last May marked a significant shift in the England squad. So we are going to run down Mary Earps career so far: her beginnings, battles and ultimate success.

Early Years: Making Her Mark

Long before she was "Mary Queen of Stops," Earps was a whirlwind of activity in Nottingham. Her childhood wasn’t just about football, but instead, it was a masterclass in variety. She was a junior black belt in judo, a swimmer, a badminton player, and a musician who reached Grade 6 in piano.

But it was her time in the dance studio that provided the most irony. While her teacher, Miss Susan, reportedly told her parents, “Mary’s a clumsy dancer,” her first football coach, Mr. Rose saw the hidden benefit, complimenting that her ballet training gave her a unique flexibility and agility. As he recalled:

“Mary used to dive as a goalkeeper in a way not many other kids her age did... I feel it made her flexible, quick on her feet and made her more agile and graceful.”

Photo Credit: Mary Earps via The Athletic

Mary’s competitive fire was evident long before she stepped onto a professional pitch. In her book, she describes a "tunnel vision" that took over when she was participating in sport:

"As young as five or six I’d enter ‘the zone’ where my eyes would fix on the end goal and I couldn’t see or hear anything else that was going on around me."

Breaking the Grass Ceiling

The transition to football began in the family garden, where she eventually took over from her dad to become her brother Joel’s primary training partner. However, the path wasn't easy for a girl in football in the early 2000s. At her primary school, Mary saw the disparity between girls and boys' access to sport, writing a homework piece titled: Should girls be allowed to choose between the boys’ and the girls’ ‘games’ activities?

She grew tired of being forced to do sewing while the boys played in the mud, and eventually won over the teachers, and she became the first girl to play on the school’s boys-only team, whilst, without realising, blazing a trail for those behind her.

Her obsession with goalkeeping was cemented at age 10 with West Bridgford Colts. In a game where every player had to take a turn in goal, Mary was up first, and when a penalty was called, she saved it.

"This position is important, I thought. And I didn’t want to leave it. I would make it mine."

The Grind and the Six Jobs

The glamorous life of a professional footballer was a distant dream for most young girls in this era, and in order to fund her early career, Mary was the ultimate hustler. During her late teens, she worked six different jobs simultaneously. She would finish a shift at the cinema, get a call from her manager at Doncaster Belles, and realise she had a game the next morning.

At 17, she became the youngest keeper in the WSL, earning just £25 a match. And even when she had to resit her first year of A-levels, due to work overload, Mary hired a biology tutor with money earned from a toy shop, and eventually earned a degree from Loughborough University in Information Studies and Business Management.

From the Wilderness to the World Stage

Mary’s career trajectory wasn't always upward. After a stint at Wolfsburg in Germany, where she learned the specific diving technique that would later save a World Cup final penalty, she found herself out of the England squad. Under Phil Neville, she was the third choice at the 2019 World Cup and was eventually dropped entirely.

In 2020, she was considering international retirement, but after a management change to the successful Netherland’s coach, Sarina Wiegman, marked the start of, what we now know as, the Mary Earps’ Dominance era.

“I’ve been watching you for a while, I think you’re a fantastic goalkeeper... I see you as my number one.”

That belief sparked one of the greatest runs of form in English goalkeeping history. Mary became the backbone of the Euro 2022 winning side, conceding just two goals the entire tournament.

In 2019, Mary joined a newly promoted Manchester United side, a move that would define the next five years of her career. She didn’t just join a club with elite ambition, but also became a vocal leader and a fan favourite.

Her time in Manchester was marked by record-breaking consistency. In the 2022-23 season, she kept 14 clean sheets, earning her the WSL Golden Glove. But her crowning achievement of her final season in the red shirt came in May 2024 in front of a packed Wembley crowd, where Mary helped United lift their first-ever major trophy, the Women's FA Cup, with a dominant 4-0 win over Tottenham.

Australia 2023: The Peak of the Power

If Euro 2022 was the comeback, the 2023 World Cup in Australia was the confirmation of her greatness. Mary was the talk of the town during, and post, the 2023 World Cup, not just for her excellent goalkeeping, shown in those three clean sheets on the road to the final, but for cultural defining moments.

The moment that etched her name into sporting history came in the final against Spain. With England losing 1-0, a penalty was awarded to the Spanish side. In a moment of pure focus, Mary dove to her left to deny Jenni Hermoso, followed by an X-rated (but iconic), passionate shout of "F*** off!" that became an instant viral sensation. While England lost the final, Mary’s heroics earned her the Golden Glove as the tournament’s best goalkeeper. She returned home not just as a player, but as a national hero who had proven that even in defeat, a goalkeeper could be the most captivating person on the pitch.

The Cultural Icon

Mary’s impact eventually transcended the pitch. During the 2023 World Cup, she took on England’s kit sponsor, Nike, when they refused to sell goalkeeper jerseys.

"I can’t really sugar-coat this in any way... It is hugely disappointing and very hurtful."

The resulting public outcry, including a petition with over 130,000 signatures, forced a total U-turn from the brand. When her shirts finally went on sale, they sold out in minutes.

Her list of accolades, to name a few, since then reads like a Hall of Fame entry:

Two-time FIFA Best Women's Goalkeeper
World Cup Golden Glove 2023
BBC Sports Personality of the Year 2023
First female footballer with a wax figure at Madame Tussauds

A Final Bow at Wembley

In May 2025, just five weeks before the Euro 2025 tournament where England were set to defend their title, Mary stunned the football world by announcing her international retirement. After 53 caps and eight years of service, she explained that it was time to step aside for the younger generation.

In a heartfelt message to fans, she said:

"My journey has never been the simplest, so in true Mary fashion, this isn't a simple goodbye... For me, ultimately this is the right time for me to step aside and give the younger generation an opportunity to thrive."

As she stands on that Wembley pitch next Tuesday, the cheers won't just be for the trophies. They will be for the girl who refused to sew, the teenager who worked six jobs, and the woman who taught a new generation of girls that being the 'one in goal' is the coolest job in the world.

Mary Earps: Rapid, agile, and, above all, fearless.