Araya Marilyn Roxanne Dennis (born 11 January 2006) is an English professional

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby lea ...

who plays as a

forward Forward is a relative direction, the opposite of backward. Forward may also refer to: People *Forward (surname) Sports * Forward (association football) * Forward (basketball), including: ** Point forward ** Power forward (basketball) ** Smal ...

for

Women's Super League The Women's Super League (WSL), also known as the Barclays Women's Super League for sponsorship reasons, and formerly the FA WSL, is a professional association football league and the highest level of women's football in England. Currently oper ...

club

Tottenham Hotspur Tottenham Hotspur Football Club, commonly referred to as simply Tottenham (, , , ) or Spurs, is a professional Association football, football club based in Tottenham, North London, England. The club itself has stated that it should always ...

, and as a defender for the England under-19s. A product of the

Arsenal Academy The Arsenal Academy was a military academy in Columbia, South Carolina, originally established in 1842 as an independent school by the state of South Carolina. In 1845, the academy became a component of the South Carolina Military Academy (now ...

, she previously played on loan for

National League National League often refers to: *National League (baseball), one of the two baseball leagues constituting Major League Baseball in the United States and Canada *National League (division), the fifth division of the English football (soccer) system ...

side

Watford Watford () is a town and non-metropolitan district with Borough status in the United Kingdom, borough status in Hertfordshire, England, northwest of Central London, on the banks of the River Colne, Hertfordshire, River Colne. Initially a smal ...

, as well as

Women's Super League 2 The Women's Super League 2, also known as Barclays Women's Super League 2 for sponsorship reasons, is a professional football league in England, operated by WSL Football. It is the second-highest division of women's football in England. The div ...

sides

Crystal Palace Crystal Palace may refer to: Places Canada * Crystal Palace Complex (Dieppe), a former amusement park now a shopping complex in Dieppe, New Brunswick * Crystal Palace Barracks, London, Ontario * Crystal Palace (Montreal), an exhibition buildin ...

and

Southampton F.C. Southampton Football Club is a professional football club based in Southampton, Hampshire, England. The club competes in the EFL Championship, the second tier of English football. Their home ground since 2001 has been St Mary's Stadium, befor ...

Club career

Arsenal and loan spells

Dennis is a product of the

having scored 4 goals in 18 appearances for the academy team. She trained with the Arsenal first team prior to a two month spell with

National League South The National League South, officially Vanarama National League South, is a professional Association football league in England. National League South is the second division of the National League (English football), National Leagues and step ...

side

, under dual registration for the 2022–23 season, where she featured in three games, scoring one goal. On 2 September 2023, Dennis joined

Women's Championship The Women's Super League 2, also known as Barclays Women's Super League 2 for sponsorship reasons, is a professional football league in England, operated by WSL Football. It is the second-highest division of women's football in England. The div ...

club

on dual registration for the 2023–24 season, and scored on her debut with the club the next day in a 2–1 win against

Birmingham City Birmingham City Football Club is a professional football club based in Birmingham, England. Formed in 1875 as Small Heath Alliance, it was renamed Small Heath in 1888, Birmingham in 1905, and Birmingham City in 1943. The team compete in the ...

. In October, she was awarded the Women's Championship Goal of the Month, for her long-range effort from 35-yards out against

Charlton Athletic Charlton Athletic Football Club is a professional association football club based in Charlton, south-east London, England. The team compete in the EFL Championship, the second level of the English football league system. Their home ground is ...

Tottenham Hotspur

In February 2024, having played at the 2nd and 3rd levels of women's football in England, Dennis signed a two-year contract with

club

in the top tier. On 2 October 2024, she made her senior debut for Tottenham in the opening group stage match of the 2024–25 League Cup against Charlton Athletic, coming on as a 67 minute substitute. On 11 December, aged 18, Dennis scored her debut goal for the club in a 2–0 victory over Crystal Palace in the final group stage match, helping Tottenham to secure a place in the quarter-finals. Her performance was described as impressive by

VAVEL Vavel (stylized VAVEL) is a Spain-based sports news website. It has 8 editions; Spain, United States, United Kingdom, France, Argentina, Brazil, Portugal, Mexico, and Colombia Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country p ...

and Spurs manager

Robert Vilahamn Jan Robert Vilahamn, (; ; born 2 January 1983) is a Swedish professional football coach and former player, who was recently the coach of Tottenham Hotspur in the Women's Super League. Playing career Vilahamn started his career as a football p ...

Southampton (loan)

On 10 January 2025, Dennis joined Women's Championship club

Southampton Southampton is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in Hampshire, England. It is located approximately southwest of London, west of Portsmouth, and southeast of Salisbury. Southampton had a population of 253, ...

on loan for the remainder of the

2024–25 Women's Championship The 2024–25 Women's Championship season (known as the Barclays Women's Championship for sponsorship reasons) was the seventh season of the rebranded Women's Championship, the second tier of women's football in England, and the tenth season since ...

International career

Dennis was part of the England under-17 team that played in the 2023 U17 Championship up until the

semi-finals A single-elimination knockout, or sudden-death tournament is a type of elimination tournament where the loser of a match-up is immediately eliminated from the tournament. Each winner will play another in the next round, until the final match-up, ...

in May, where the youth team were defeated 3–1 by

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

. On 20 September 2023, she scored her youth international debut goals for the England under-19s, with a brace in a friendly fixture against

Denmark Denmark is a Nordic countries, Nordic country in Northern Europe. It is the metropole and most populous constituent of the Kingdom of Denmark,, . also known as the Danish Realm, a constitutionally unitary state that includes the Autonomous a ...

resulting in a 5–0 victory. In July 2024, Dennis featured in the 2024 UEFA Under-19 Championship for the under-19s, providing an assist for the final goal against Lithuania as a 70th minute substitute. For 2025 U19 Championship qualification in November and December 2024, she featured as a defender in all first round matches against

Turkey Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

, and

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south, bordered by Lithuania and Russia to the northeast, Belarus and Ukrai ...

Style of play

Dennis is a winger who contributes across the pitch. At the age of 17 she was described by ''Imeptus Football'' as a young talent who "displays an intelligence of the game way beyond her young age"; with the ability to easily escape tight spaces, draw opposition, and run channels. Crystal Palace described the forward as a fast-paced and "attack-minded right-sided player". For England at youth level, she has covered at left-back from the right-wing position, and played as a defender in the number 2 position.

Honours

Crystal Palace *

: 2023–24 Individual *

Goal of the Month: October 2023

References

External links

Araya Dennis
at Tottenham Hotspur F.C. * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Dennis, Araya 2006 births Living people Footballers from London Arsenal W.F.C. players Watford F.C. Women players FA Women's National League players Crystal Palace F.C. (Women) players Women's Super League 2 players Tottenham Hotspur F.C. Women players Women's Super League players Southampton F.C. Women players English women's footballers England women's youth international footballers Women's association football defenders 21st-century English sportswomen