London Bees are delighted to announce that defender Thea Budden has signed a new contract with the Bees for the 2026/27 season!
Defender Thea Budden will enter her second season with the club after signing a new contract ahead of the 2026/27 campaign.
Before joining the Bees in October 2025, Thea represented the Seattle Reign Academy in Seattle, Washington USA.
Throughout her football journey, Thea gained valuable experience training with both the Chelsea and Arsenal academies.
Having grown up primarily in the United States, she continued to develop her game, earning a place on her high school varsity team every year.
Last summer she received a call-up to the WPSL Reign II side, where she competed at semi-professional level, an outstanding highlight in her career.
In her first season with the Bees, Thea made 9 appearances in all competitions, getting 1 assist in her debut game for the Bees against Cambridge United in the FAWNL Plate Cup.
Throughout much of the season, Thea endured a frustrating spell with injuries that unfortunately disrupted her first campaign with the Bees.
Speaking on Thea’s new contract, London Bees Head Coach Dan McKimm said:
“We’ve not seen the best of Thea yet and injuries have really hampered her this last season.
That said, she showed what she was capable of back at Cambridge in our 4-3 win at their place.
There’s such an exciting player in there, we just need a bit of luck now to be able to get that out of her next season.
If we do, I think she’s someone who can really give us something different”.
Congratulations Thea!
The deal is subject to the usual FA and League clearances.