Beth Mead beat out Sam Kerr of Chelsea and Alexia Putellas of Barcelona to be awarded BBC Women’s Footballer of the Year 2022.
When England’s women’s national team won Euro 2022, Mead was the tournament’s top scorer and was named the tournament’s Most Valuable Player.
For the season, she made 22 appearances in the Women’s Super League for Arsenal, scoring 11 goals and assisting eight others as the team came up just short of winning the league.
The striker is no stranger to success, having been voted England’s player of the year and coming in second place at the Ballon d’Or ceremony in 2022.
Kerr, a forward for Chelsea, came in second, and Putellas, a playmaker for Barcelona, came in third.
“I’m still not sure I believe it. This is an incredible honor, “Mead said to BBC Sport.
“I’ve just been enjoying my football this season,” he said, “and for me, these are nice trophies to get hold of.” “But again, and I continue to keep saying it and it’s becoming a cliche now,” he continued, “I wouldn’t have got these without my team-mates throughout the season at Arsenal, throughout the season for the international team.”
Fans choose the winner after a group of experts created a shortlist.
Alexandra Popp, a forward for Germany’s Wolfsburg, and Wendie Renard, the captain of France’s Lyon, were also considered for the honor.
Mead follows Lucy Bronze, who won in 2018 and 2020, as the second English player to receive the BBC Footballer of the Year accolade. After Vivianne Miedema of Arsenal won it in 2021, she is the second player in Arsenal history to win the accolade in back-to-back seasons.
