Mary Earps has been given a homecoming fit for a celebrity — a glamorous photoshoot on a boat on the Thames with Tower Bridge behind her. But the former England goalkeeper, who signed a two-year deal with London City Lionesses on Friday, admits she does not know if she is ready for the scrutiny that comes with being back in the Women's Super League.
"I don't know," Earps told BBC Sport when asked if she was prepared to face the noise again. "The game can be noisy and that's hard to deal with sometimes. It kind of comes with the territory a bit and how social media has boomed."
“Mary Earps returns to WSL with London City but admits uncertainty over handling renewed scrutiny.”
The 33-year-old won BBC Sports Personality of the Year in 2023 but also faced a backlash from fans and Chelsea boss Sonia Bompastor over controversial comments about ex-England team‑mate Hannah Hampton and manager Sarina Wiegman in her autobiography, published last November. Like many high‑profile female athletes, she has been the target of social media abuse throughout her career.
After two years at Paris Saint-Germain, Earps has returned to the league where she spent five years at Manchester United. "Every contract now, with where I'm at in my career, it's just about maxing out with whatever I've got left in the tank, and I wanted to do that at home," she said.
London City are an ambitious club transformed by American businesswoman Michele Kang, who took over in December 2023 and has invested heavily. The team finished sixth in their debut WSL season after promotion in 2025. Earps was impressed by a video call with Kang: "She showed a real energy for me to join. I found it really impressive that she could make any time for me at all."
The contrast with her move to Wolfsburg eight years ago could not be starker. Then, there was no club photographer; her agent had to buy a scarf from the shop and take a makeshift image. "I would never have imagined this even five years ago," Earps said of the Thames photoshoot. "That shoot just poured petrol on the excitement fire."
Earps helped England win Euro 2022 and reach the 2023 World Cup final, retiring from international football last year after 53 caps. Asked if she was ready for the spotlight again, she added: "I don't know is the honest answer to that question, but it's also a big compliment about where the game is. You've got to take the rough with the smooth sometimes."