Ballon d’Or winner Alexia Putellas has reached an agreement with London City Lionesses, multiple sources confirmed to ESPN, after leaving Barcelona following a 14-year spell.
Putellas had several offers to consider after deciding to end her time in Spain, including from the NWSL, however, London City were always front runners to sign the Spaniard, sources added, and a deal has been agreed for a move to the Women’s Super League side.
Putellas’s reasoning for joining London City span a desire to stay in Europe and remain close to home as well as not competing regularly against Barcelona, sources added.
However, London City’s owner, Michele Kang has high hopes for the fresh project and is eager to have her London team — she also owns OL Lyonnes in France and Washington Spirit in the NWSL — featuring in the Champions League.
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As four-time winners of the competition and regular Liga F champions, Barcelona will likely remain competitive in the competition, meaning a meeting between the two is still possible.
London City finished their debut season in the league in sixth with only the top three earning European qualification.
The club is still a work in progress, with high ambition in both titles and as a competition force in women’s football, including plans for a state-of-the-art training facility, however, this appeals to Putellas, sources at London City added.
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Sources also told ESPN that London City are set to sign former Barcelona teammate, defender Mapi León.
Another source added that Putellas’ goal is to prepare for the 2027 World Cup and 2028 Olympic games at the highest environment while pushing herself out of her comfort zone.
The 32-year-old called time with Barcelona after winning a second quadruple last season, ending the campaign with 21 goals and 13 assists over 42 appearances in all competitions.
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With 232 goals, she is the top scorer in the history of the women’s team and the second top scorer across both the men’s and women’s teams — only Lionel Messi (672) has score more.
Her performances with her club led to her winning the Ballon d’Or in 2021 and 2022, years in which she was also named The Best FIFA Women’s Player.
She also won the World Cup with Spain in 2023.
