The best BWSL goalkeepers in FM26 and what makes them so good
Goalkeepers. The unsung heroes of any Football Manager save, and the position that can make or break a season, before you have even thought about your striker situation.
With the Barclays Women’s Super League fully playable in FM26 for the first time, there has never been a better time to get to know the league's best stoppers. Whether you are building a title-challenging side or just wanting to concede fewer goals, getting your goalkeeper right is the foundation on which everything else is built.
This week, we are kicking off the positional breakdown series by looking at the BWSL's best goalkeepers in FM26, taking their standout attributes and showing you how they play out on the pitch in real life. It is one thing to see a high Reflexes rating in the game; it’s another thing to understand what that actually means for your team week to week.
In this piece, we will be working through the goalkeepers you should be signing, the attributes that matter most at this level, and why getting this position right could be the difference between a good save and a great one.
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Hannah Hampton
Hannah Hampton is the obvious place to start. The Chelsea and England number one is the most signed BWSL goalkeeper in FM26, and when you look at her attribute profile, it is not difficult to see why.
Her Reflexes and Passing are the two attributes that define her in the game, and as it turns out, they also define how both Chelsea and England like to play. Hampton is frequently the one who starts attacks for her team, her distribution setting the tone before anyone else has touched the ball.
However, before we get to that, let us start where every great goalkeeper starts - keeping the ball out of the net.
Hampton's Reflexes are rated at 17, the highest of any goalkeeper in the league. This is the kind of number that looks impressive on a screen, but it’s even more impressive when you see it in action. This save she made in the game against Manchester City is about as good an illustration as you will find.
With Chelsea under pressure, a shot comes in from close range, and Hampton has to move sharply across her goal line to keep it out. There is no time to set her position or to think. It is pure reaction, the kind of save that can keep a team in the game.
It’s not just the reaction saves that set Hampton apart. Her willingness to come off her line and make herself big in one-on-one situations is a key element of her game.
In this instance, an opponent gets in behind the Chelsea defence and is through, one-on-one with Hampton. The easy option for a goalkeeper is to stay on the line and hope. The Chelsea number one does not do that. She comes out, makes herself as big as possible, and cuts down the angle to the point where the attacker has almost nowhere to go.
In FM26, that willingness to close down and dominate one-on-one situations is captured in her profile, and it is part of what makes her so difficult to score against.
Hampton's Passing is rated 18 in FM26, the fourth highest of any player in the BWSL regardless of position. That’s not a number you would normally associate with a goalkeeper, and that is exactly the point.
This image from the match against Aston Villa shows exactly what that rating means in practice. With Chelsea looking to play out from the back, Hampton receives the ball and immediately looks to play out to the flanks rather than going long.
Her distribution is such a weapon, allowing her team to bypass the opposition's press and progress up the pitch. It is something she does for Chelsea week to week and something England relied on heavily at Euro 2025.
When under pressure, Hampton doesn’t panic; she finds the pass, plays it accurately, and gives her team a platform to attack from. Her progressive passing numbers back that up, with nearly five progressive passes per 90 so far this season. For a goalkeeper, those are remarkable figures.
Hannah Hampton is the complete modern goalkeeper. She has the reflexes to make saves that shouldn’t be made, the bravery to dominate her area and close down one-on-one situations, and the distribution to start attacks. Her FM 26 profile captures all of that, and it’s why she is the first name on the team sheet for both Chelsea and England.
Phallon Tullis-Joyce
Phallon Tullis-Joyce is a different kind of goalkeeper from Hannah Hampton. The United States international stands at 6'0" and dominates her area in a way that makes life very difficult for opposing forwards. She is a commanding, physical presence between the sticks, and in FM26, her profile reflects that.
Her Aerial Reach is rated at 17, and her Reflexes at 16, backed by shot-stopping quality to match. She is in the prime of her career at Manchester United, and FM managers will find it very difficult to look past her.
Tullis-Joyce's Reflexes rating is not just about shot-stopping from distance; it’s also about the moments when a goalkeeper has to make a decision in a fraction of a second and get it right.
Here, with Arsenal looking for a goal, the ball falls to Olivia Smith on the edge of the six-yard box. Tullis-Joyce does not stay on her line and wait. She rushes out, closes down the space, and blocks the shot before it can be taken cleanly.
Her goalkeeping style is brave and decisive, and doesn’t always get the recognition it deserves. On this occasion, the shot is blocked, the danger is cleared, and Manchester United carry on.
In FM26, that willingness to come off her line and close down is captured in her Rushing Out tendency of 12 and Bravery of 15, which tells you she can be counted on in big moments. Combined with her Reflexes, she has all the attributes of a top goalkeeper and one that could make the difference in your FM save.
The numbers tell the same story. This season, Tullis-Joyce has conceded 17 goals against an xG against of 21.17, meaning she is preventing significantly more goals than the chances she faces would suggest. At 0.21 prevented goals per 90, she is proving to be one of the most effective shot-stoppers in the league this season.
Moreover, this example shows why her Aerial Reach rating of 17 is the headline number in her profile.
Arsenal deliver a corner into the box, and what happens next is exactly what you want from your goalkeeper. Tullis-Joyce does not wait to see what develops. She comes to claim, gets up above everyone in the box, and punches the ball clear with conviction. It’s a commanding move that immediately relieves the pressure on the United defence.
Here is another great example of Tullis-Joyce commanding her area. A ball is played into the box, and the Manchester United goalkeeper makes the decision to come and claim it. What stands out is the leap.
She gets up at a height that gives nobody around her a chance of competing, and takes the ball cleanly out of the air. Her timing is excellent, and she has such confidence and the conviction to commit to the claim when there are bodies around her.
This season, she is winning 85.71% of her aerial duels and averaging 1.06 exits per 90, showing a goalkeeper who is regularly coming off her line to deal with balls into the box rather than sitting and hoping. In FM26, her profile is in no way an exaggeration; it’s exactly what you see every time she plays.
Daphne van Domselaar
The Arsenal and Netherlands international is a goalkeeper defined by her athleticism and her reading of the game. Her FM attribute profile reflects a goalkeeper who is as quick and agile as she is technically assured.
Her Reflexes are rated at 16, Acceleration at 14, and Agility at 16, and it’s a combination that makes her such a difficult goalkeeper to score against. She is fast in every direction, and she recovers her position quicker than almost anyone else in the league. These attributes alone make her one of the most exciting goalkeeper options in the BWSL database.
This sequence of images from the match against Chelsea tells you everything you need to know about what acceleration, agility, and reflexes at this level actually look like in practice.
Van Domselaar is positioned on the edge of her six-yard box, closing down the angle at the near post but simultaneously poised to move across if the shot goes the other way. This is intelligent positioning, and it allows her to make an important save, but the danger is not over. The ball rebounds onto the bar and up into the air, and what happens next is where her profile really shows itself.
She sprints back to her line, gets there before anyone else in the box, and blocks the header from close range. Her recovery speed is remarkable, from making the initial save to repositioning for the rebound, the whole sequence takes seconds, and she handles both moments without hesitation.
In FM26, her physical attributes combine to make van Domselaar one of the most athletic and reactive goalkeepers in the English top flight, and this is a great demonstration of why.
This image from the match against London City Lionesses shows a different side of van Domselaar's game, and a useful contrast to what we saw from Tullis-Joyce earlier in this piece.
We can see that a free kick comes into a crowded box, and van Domselaar decides to come and claim it. What is interesting here is the process. She cannot simply leap above everyone on pure physical power. The Arsenal goalkeeper has to watch the ball, read its flight, and time her run precisely to get there at the right moment.
She gets it right. She comes a long way off her line, times the run perfectly, and punches clear above the crowd. In FM terms, her Rushing Out ability and Anticipation are what make that possible.
This season, she is averaging 0.89 exits per 90 and winning almost all of her aerial duels, which tells you she is not just coming off her line regularly but doing so with commitment and getting it right every time.
Daphne van Domselaar is a very good reminder that commanding your area is not always about being the tallest player in the box - sometimes it’s about being the smartest one.
Conclusion
Three goalkeepers, three very different profiles, three very different ways of making a difference in your save. Hampton's distribution turns defence into attack before most players have touched the ball. Tullis-Joyce's aerial dominance and shot-stopping make her one of the hardest goalkeepers in the league to score past. Meanwhile, Van Domselaar's athleticism, anticipation and agility give her the tools to deal with whatever comes her way.
Getting your goalkeeper right in FM26 is about understanding what kind of team you want to build and which goalkeeper fits that system. All three of these players are exceptional options in the BWSL database, and all three will make your save better in different ways.
On Friday, we turn our attention to the Barclays Women's Super League 2, where a new set of goalkeepers are making their case for a place in your FM save. Stay tuned.
Don't forget, the WSL Football FM competition runs until Friday, 1st May at 5 pm. Head to the competition page for your chance to win.
