Elise Hughes

Elise Anna Hughes (born 15 April 2001) is a Welsh footballer who plays as a forward for Women's Super League 2 club Sunderland and the Welsh national team.

Early life Hughes was born in Hawarden, Flintshire. Her grandfather David and father Peter were both footballers.

On 4 January 2020, Hughes joined Bristol City on loan for the rest of the season. However, Hughes returned to Everton on 30 January to rehabilitate after suffering an ACL injury.

In the 2023–24, Hughes scored 16 goals in 21 games for Crystal Palace, winning the Championship Golden Boot as Palace won promotion to the WSL, however she suffered another ACL injury playing against Lewes in the penultimate game of the season.

Hughes is a UEFA Licence Holder and is involved in coaching her local club, Connah's Quay Nomads.

On 2 July 2026, Hughes was announced at Sunderland.

International career Hughes has made appearances for the Wales women's national football team at the under-16 and under-17 levels. Elise now has 31 caps from Cymru and has scored 3 goals, the first of which was scored against Iceland in 2023 in the UEFA Women's Nations League. She suffered from an ACL which meant she was unable to play for many of the UEFA Women's Euro 2025 qualifiers.

In June 2025, Hughes was named in Wales' squad for UEFA Women's Euro 2025.

Hughes scored the equalising goal for Wales during added time in their 2–2 draw with the Czech Republic in their opening game of the 2027 FIFA Women's World Cup qualification campaign on 3 March 2026.

Career statistics Club

International

Scores and results list Wales's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Hughes goal.