Arsenal have signed Spain goalkeeper Misa Rodriguez from Real Madrid following the expiration of her terms at the Liga F side.
The 27-year-old’s contract in north London runs for three years with an option of an additional 12 months.
Rodriguez joined Madrid in 2020 upon the women’s team’s formation, became club captain in 2025 and holds the record for the most appearances (215).
The Spain international will strengthen Arsenal’s goalkeeping options, competing alongside Daphne van Domselaar, Anneke Borbe and promising new Danish 18-year-old signing Isabella Damm.
Van Domselaar, predominantly Arsenal’s No 1 since moving in 2024 from Aston Villa, has struggled with injury and was not selected for the Netherlands squad in May due to scheduled surgery. She is now progressing well, according to the club.
The Netherlands international started 14 Women’s Super League games last season and, when she was absent, Borbe stepped up and proved her worth. Arsenal sustained multiple injuries in the goalkeeping department last year, with Manuela Zinsberger sidelined with an anterior cruciate ligament issue, and want to avoid a similar situation.
Van Domselaar struggled with injuries last term (Adrian Dennis/AFP via Getty Images)
Rodriguez’s move follows the departures of Zinsberger and academy graduate Naomi Williams upon the expiry of their contracts, while Barbora Votíkova returned to Slavia Prague after her loan spell.
Rodriguez, born in Las Palmas, Gran Canaria, won the Liga F Zamora Trophy — awarded to the goalkeeper with the league’s best goals-against record — in her debut campaign and again in the 2022-23 season. She started in the youth ranks at CD Femarguin before joining Atletico Madrid in 2017 and Deportivo La Coruna in 2019.
“I’m so proud to join this great club,” Rodriguez said in a release on Wednesday. “Arsenal is one of the top clubs in the world and I’m really excited to be part of the team and take on this new challenge. I want to help us compete for trophies and make more history, together with our supporters.”
On the international stage, Rodriguez, who has 24 caps to her name, is challenging Cata Coll to be Spain’s No 1. Rodriguez was part of Spain’s 2024 Nations League and 2023 World Cup-winning squads. She started all three World Cup group games before Barcelona’s Coll played in the knockout stages.
In north London, the experienced shot-stopper joins fellow Spain team-mates Mariona Caldentey and new signing Ona Batlle. She becomes Arsenal’s seventh arrival of the transfer window.
“Misa is a top goalkeeper who has performed consistently at a high level for several years,” head coach Renee Slegers said in the release. “As well as her technical attributes, she has great presence and communication on the pitch and we believe she’ll be a strong addition to our goalkeeping unit, alongside Daphne, Anneke and Isabella.”
