Manchester United Women and head coach Marc Skinner have reached a mutual agreement to terminate his contract, ending his five-year tenure at the club.
Skinner leaves after overseeing the most successful period in the team's history, guiding United to three consecutive Women's FA Cup finals. He lifted the trophy in 2024 with a 4-0 win over Tottenham at Wembley in front of a sold-out crowd, securing the club's first major honour. United lost the other two finals, in 2023 and 2025, to Chelsea.
Skinner also led United to their highest-ever Women's Super League finish in 2022-23, when they finished as runners-up and qualified for the Women's Champions League for the first time. The 48-year-old signed a new two-year contract, with the option of a further year, last summer after securing a second consecutive Champions League qualification place.
His final season proved disappointing as an injury-hit squad fell short on multiple fronts. United finished fourth in the WSL behind champions Chelsea, Arsenal and Manchester City, missing out on Champions League qualification. They also lost the League Cup final to Chelsea and saw their first European campaign in the competition proper end in the quarter-finals against Bayern Munich.
A club statement said Marc leaves having made a significant contribution to the continued progress of Manchester United Women, adding that the club placed on record its sincere thanks for his professionalism, commitment and dedication throughout his time at United, and wished him every success in the future.
Spending gap with WSL rivals
Skinner's exit comes amid growing questions over whether United are investing enough to compete with the WSL's leading clubs. While rivals have strengthened significantly this summer, United have made just two signings, defender Andrea Medina, 22, and goalkeeper Janina Leitzig, 27. They have also lost forward Melvine Malard to Chelsea in a deal reportedly worth around £850,000.
London City Lionesses, who finished fifth last season, have signed two-time Ballon d'Or winner Alexia Putellas. Lyon defender Alice Sombath, who won the Champions League with the French side in 2022, has joined Tottenham. Arsenal have added Georgia Stanway and Ona Batlle, while Chelsea have brought in Katie McCabe and Malard. Manchester City have signed Beth Mead and Niamh Charles.
Criticism over cup record
Skinner faced criticism throughout his tenure from sections of the fanbase, with some arguing he had taken the team as far as he could. Last season's runs to the League Cup final and Champions League quarter-finals reinforced that view for some critics, who pointed to a record of one win from four finals, with all three defeats coming against Chelsea.
Skinner, formerly of Birmingham City and Orlando Pride, consistently pointed to the investment gap between United and their closest rivals. In May he said: "We see the investment around us, we see the strategy around us. No longer can we just look at them teams above us, we have to be able to be aware of those teams below."
He added: "I know everybody wants to jump on the negative but there's also amazing growth from this team too. We have to do some reflection, of course we do. The reality is we have to assess over the summer where the resource goes and which direction we push that in, to make sure we stay in that chasing pack and obviously make sure the teams behind us can't catch us."
Skinner departs just over a month before United begin their new WSL season away to London City Lionesses on September 4.
