Manchester City legend Steph Houghton inducted into National Football Museum Hall of Fame

Manchester City legend Steph Houghton has been officially inducted into the National Football Museum’s Hall of Fame.

The 36-year-old, who retired at the end of the season, has joined a select group of footballers to be honoured at the Manchester venue in recognition of her huge impact on the women’s game at domestic and international level. The induction took place on June 12 during a special event at the Etihad Stadium celebrating Houghton’s career and raising money for both City in the Community and the Darby Rimmer Foundation.

“I’m honoured to be inducted into the National Football Museum Hall of Fame so soon after announcing my retirement," Houghton said. "It is a prestigious list, with less than 200 players, managers and teams inducted so I am very humbled.”

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"I share the recognition with my teammates, managers, coaches, club support staff and family, who have all contributed so much to my career and without them then I wouldn’t have achieved the success and enjoyment that I had in football.”

Born in Durham, Houghton’s career began in the North-East at her childhood club, Sunderland, where she spent five years and helped the Black Cats achieve promotion from the Northern Division. The centre-back would then move on to Leeds Carnegie in 2007 and lift the Women’s Premier League Cup with them in 2010.

The silverware continued to flow for Houghton after signing for Arsenal, where she collected two WSL trophies, two FA Women’s Cups, and three League Cups before joining City in 2014. Her decade-long career with the Blues saw her cement herself as one of the finest defenders in the women's game, and she retires as the club's most decorated player, with eight titles to her name.

Her leadership qualities carried through into the national team, where she would collect 121 caps for England across 14 years, captaining the Lionesses to third place in the 2015 Canada World Cup. Houghton was also one of the first wave of players to be given a central contract by the Football Association (FA).

Tim Desmond, CEO of the National Football Museum said: “Steph’s induction to the National Football Museum Hall of Fame is a testament to not only her career in football, but how she has carried herself through it. A leader on the pitch and a leading example for those she inspired along the way.

"She’s been at the heart of some of the most poignant and important moments in the growth of women’s football in this country, and despite setbacks along the way, has left an indelible mark on the game. In 2019, the National Football Museum relaunched the Hall of Fame with a commitment to achieve 50% female representation across the game and celebrating legacies such as Steph’s is something we pride ourselves on and feel very honoured to be a part of”.

Houghton joins an abundance of esteemed inductees who have championed women in football, including former City midfielder Jill Scott.