Arsenal agree world-record transfer fee with Liverpool to sign forward Olivia Smith in women's football's first-ever £1m deal

According to The Guardian, the 20-year-old Liverpool forward is poised to become the first player in women’s football to move for a seven-figure sum, setting a new benchmark for the women’s game globally. She joined Liverpool only last summer, arriving from Sporting CP in Portugal for what was then a club-record outlay of just over £200,000.

In her debut campaign in the Women’s Super League, the versatile forward wasted little time making an impression. She found the net seven times in 20 league appearances, an output that accounted for nearly one-third of Liverpool’s total goals across the season. Arsenal were among several top clubs to test Liverpool’s resolve with transfer bids, but it took a world-record offer to convince the Merseyside outfit to part ways with their star.

Smith’s record-breaking switch carries symbolic weight beyond just numbers. Not since Trevor Francis became the first £1 million male player in 1979, to seal a transfer from Birmingham City to Nottingham Forest, has a transfer so clearly signalled a shift in football’s financial landscape. Smith’s move now marks a similar milestone in the women’s game, a sign that top female players are finally beginning to be valued closer to their worth.

The Gunners’ willingness to spend big on Smith signals their aggressive strategy as they look to build on their recent Women’s Champions League triumph. This summer has already seen two high-profile arrivals in north London. Chloe Kelly made her transfer from Manchester City permanent in the summer, whereas left-back Taylor Hinds arrived after the expiration of her Liverpool deal. But the acquisition of Smith represents a significant leap in terms of financial commitment and a clear message of intent from the club.