Jude Bellingham

Jude Bellingham, born on 29 June 2003 in Stourbridge in the West Midlands, is an English attacking midfielder. As of October 2026 he plays for La Liga club Real Madrid and for the England national team. He came through the youth ranks at Birmingham City, which he joined as an under-8.

France Football and L'Équipe list him as one of the 30 nominees for the 2026 Ballon d'Or, the annual award for the best men's footballer of the season. He has been close to the trophy before: in 2024 he finished third in the Ballon d'Or voting and also third for The Best FIFA Men's Player.

At 16 years and 38 days he became Birmingham City's youngest ever first-team player, before moving to Borussia Dortmund in 2020, where he won the 2020–21 DFB-Pokal and was named Bundesliga Player of the Season for 2022–23. That year he also collected the European Golden Boy and the Kopa Trophy. Real Madrid signed him in 2023 for €103 million, and in his first season he was the club's top league scorer, won La Liga and the Champions League and was voted La Liga Player of the Season.

He was named in the FIFPRO World 11 in 2023, 2024 and 2025. For England he played at the European Championships of 2020 and 2024 and the World Cups of 2022 and 2026; at the 2026 tournament his seven goals helped England to third place and set a national record for goals by one player at a single World Cup.

Sources of this text: Wikipedia · France Football / L'Équipe