WSL players with most appearances of all time
By Ali Rampling
The Women's Super League first kicked off in 2011, and in the intervening years four separate clubs have been crowned champions of England.
A selection of the finest players in English and world football have plied their trade in the division in the WSL; from World Cup winners to record-breaking goal scorers.
But who has made the most appearances in the WSL? Here are the league's all-time top appearance makers.
20 - Ellen White (144 appearances)
In addition to being one of the WSL's all-time top appearance makers, Ellen White is right up there for goals too, netting 61 times in her 144 top flight outings.
England's all-time top scorer amassed her 144 appearances across spells at Arsenal, Notts County, Birmingham and Manchester City, winning two WSL titles in the process. She retired in 2022.
18 = Fara Williams (147 appearances)
England's most capped player Fara Williams is also right up there when it comes to WSL appearances. The midfielder made 147 appearances across spells with Everton, Liverpool, Arsenal and Reading, before retiring in 2021.
Williams has a pair of WSL winners medals from her time at Liverpool, winning consecutive titles in 2013 and 2014.
18 = Izzy Christiansen (147 appearances)
Izzy Christiansen's WSL appearance haul has come from spells at Birmingham, Manchester City and Everton. The midfielder won the WSL with City in 2016, scooping the PFA Player of the Year in the process.
Christiansen departed the WSL for European heavyweights Lyon in 2018, before returning to the top flight with Everton - the club with whom she started her senior career - in January 2020.
16 = Drew Spence (149 appearances)
Drew Spence spent 14 years at Chelsea between 2008 and 2022, winning five WSL titles as the Blues established themselves as a footballing powerhouse.
The midfielder departed for Tottenham in the summer of 2022, and quickly became a key first team figure for the north London outfit.
16 = Gemma Bonner (149 appearances)
Gemma Bonner has notched up her WSL appearance haul across spells with Chelsea, Liverpool and Manchester City, before departing for the NWSL in 2021.
The defender returned to the English top flight with Liverpool - the club where she won back-to-back WSL titles - in January 2023.
14 = Angharad James (154 appearances)
Angharad James has reached her WSL appearance tally following spells at six clubs: Bristol Academy, Notts County, Yeovil, Everton, Reading and Tottenham.
The Wales centurion departed the WSL for the NWSL in 2021, but returned the following year to sign for Tottenham.
14 = Remi Allen (154 appearances)
Remi Allen has plied her trade for four WSL clubs: Lincoln Ladies, Birmingham, Reading and Aston Villa.
Allen enjoyed a particularly fruitful 2017/18 campaign, registering nine goals and six assists for Reading, before departing for ambitious Championship outfit Leicester in 2020 ahead of their promotion winning campaign. The midfielder returned to the top flight the following season with Villa.
12 = Mary Earps (157 appearances)
Mary Earps has featured for an array of WSL clubs since the league's formation in 2011: Doncaster, Birmingham, Bristol Academy, Reading and Manchester United.
The goalkeeper departed the Royals for a spell at European heavyweights Wolfsburg in 2018, before signing for United ahead of their debut season in the top flight. Since joining the Red Devils, Earps has established herself as one of the finest goalkeepers in the top flight, and nailed down the England number one spot.
12 = Danielle Carter (157 appearances)
Danielle Carter has featured over 150 times in the WSL across spells with Arsenal, Reading and Brighton.
The forward spent over a decade with the Gunners, winning a pair of WSL titles. Carter's appearance tally comes despite missing two seasons of action after suffering two ACL ruptures in the space of 14 months.
11 - Laura Coombs (159 appearances)
Laura Coombs has amassed her WSL appearance tally while playing for a selection of the biggest sides in the top flight, enjoying spells at Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool and Manchester City.
The midfielder became a WSL champion with Chelsea in 2015, and netted City's goal in a 1-1 Manchester derby draw in front of a record crowd at the Etihad in December 2022.
10 - Jordan Nobbs (161 appearances)
Jordan Nobbs joined Arsenal ahead of the inaugural WSL season and spent 13 years with the Gunners, winning three WSL titles.
The midfielder's stunning long range free kick against Manchester City in the 2017 Spring Series is one of an assortment of memorable goals she has netted in the top flight. Nobbs departed Arsenal for Aston Villa in January 2023.
9 - Steph Houghton (164 appearances)
Steph Houghton spent three years at Arsenal, winning two successive WSL titles, before joining top flight newbies Manchester City in 2014.
Having played here, there and everywhere during the early stages of her career, Houghton nailed down a spot at centre back during her time at City, captaining the club to their maiden WSL title in 2016.
7 = Natasha Harding (166 appearances)
Natasha Harding joined the WSL in 2012 when she moved to Bristol Academy, and has gone on to star for Manchester City, Liverpool, Reading and Aston Villa.
The forward amassed 84 WSL appearances during her time with the Royals, before departing for Aston Villa in the summer of 2022.
7 = Victoria Williams (166 appearances)
Victoria Williams has amassed her WSL appearance haul across spells with Chelsea, Doncaster, Sunderland and Brighton.
The centre back joined the Seagulls in 2018, and wears the captain's armband for her side.
6 - Sophie Ingle (168 appearances)
Sophie Ingle first joined Chelsea in 2012, before departing to join Bristol Academy and then Liverpool.
The midfielder rejoined the Blues in 2018 and has been a pivotal part of the club's WSL dominance, winning three successive WSL titles. Her sensational goal against Arsenal in 2020 was nominated for the Puskas award.
5 - Millie Bright (169 appearances)
Millie Bright has amassed her WSL appearance tally across spells at Doncaster and Chelsea.
The centre back joined the Blues in 2015 and has gone on to establish herself as one of the top defenders in world football, nailing down an England starting spot and winning five WSL titles.
4 - Kerys Harrop (173 appearances)
Kerys Harrop had been a one-club woman prior to her 2020 move to Tottenham, having spent the first nine years of her career at Birmingham.
Capable of playing at both centre back and full back, Harrop was part of Birmingham's golden age of women's football, winning the FA Cup in 2012, reaching the Champions League semi finals in 2014 and narrowly missing out on the WSL title that same year.
3 - Kate Longhurst (174 appearances)
Kate Longhurst began her WSL career with Chelsea in 2011, before moving to Liverpool in 2013.
The versatile Colchester United academy graduate won consecutive WSL titles with the Reds, before departing for top flight newbies West Ham - the team she supported growing up - in 2018.
2 - Jill Scott (175 appearances)
Jill Scott racked up 175 WSL appearances across spells with Everton, Manchester City and Aston Villa prior to her retirement in 2022.
The England centurion was an integral part of the City team that won their maiden WSL title in 2016, before landing a unique European Championship and I'm a Celebrity double in 2022.
1 - Gilly Flaherty (177 appearances)
Gilly Flaherty had the honour of scoring the WSL's very first goal in April 2011, netting the winner for Arsenal against Chelsea. The centre back would go on to win two successive WSL titles with the former, before joining the latter in 2014, where she won a further two league titles.
Flaherty departed Chelsea for West Ham in 2018 and captained the side during their debut season in the WSL. She joined Liverpool in the summer of 2022, before announcing her retirement the following January.