Lotte Wubben-Moy: England’s socially conscious centre-back in profile | OneFootball

Arsenal defender Lotte Wubben-Moy was a squad player with England’s triumphant Euro 2022 side but will be ready to step up to the first team at the World Cup should Sarina Wiegman call upon her, with a number of high-profile defensive injury concerns making that increasingly likely.

The Londoner, born to Dutch and English parents in Bow, has been with the Gunners since she was a child except for a stint in US college soccer with the North Carolina Tar Heels between 2017 and 2020, where her roommate was Alessia Russo, with whom she has just been reunited at club level.

By enrolling at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, the pair were following in the footsteps of fellow Lioness Lucy Bronze, but there time in North America was sadly curtailed by the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic, which at least enabled her to return to North London.

Now 24, Wubben-Moy has played 66 times for the Gunners over the course of her two stints with the club since 2015, scoring five times and counting England colleagues Leah Williamson and Beth Mead among her illustrious teammates.

She was also captain of England’s successful under-17s side between 2015 and 2017 and has since picked up 10 caps for the senior side, a total she will be hoping to add to in Australia and New Zealand.

However, perhaps Wubben-Moy’s biggest contribution to the Lionesses came immediately after the Euros, and off the pitch.

While the Lionesses have become an important voice in asking for better for women in sport, and for inclusion in general, Wubben-Moy has been at the forefront of it.

A player who understands her responsibilities as a role model, it was her idea to demand equal access to sport for girl’s in school after the Euros final, leading to £600m of funding being pledged by the government.

Wubben-Moy’s affinity for Arsenal and the local area is well known – and her new deal with the club includes a commitment to support upcoming local community projects.

The centre-back also spoke out against the hosting of the Qatar World Cup due to the country’s laws on homosexuality.