.jpg) James withLeeds United in 2025 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Daniel Owen James[1] | ||
| Date of birth | (1997-11-10)10 November 1997 (age 28)[2] | ||
| Place of birth | Kingston upon Hull, England | ||
| Height | 5 ft 7 in (1.70 m)[3] | ||
| Position | Winger | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Leeds United | ||
| Number | 7 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 2006–2014 | Hull City | ||
| 2014–2016 | Swansea City | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2018–2019 | Swansea City | 33 | (4) |
| 2017 | →Shrewsbury Town (loan) | 0 | (0) |
| 2019–2021 | Manchester United | 50 | (6) |
| 2021– | Leeds United | 113 | (29) |
| 2022–2023 | →Fulham (loan) | 20 | (2) |
| International career‡ | |||
| 2013–2015 | Wales U17 | 8 | (2) |
| 2015–2016 | Wales U19 | 8 | (1) |
| 2017 | Wales U20 | 3 | (1) |
| 2016–2018 | Wales U21 | 11 | (0) |
| 2018– | Wales | 61 | (9) |
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 17:18, 19 April 2025 (UTC) ‡ National team caps and goals as of 20:57, 18 November 2025 (UTC) | |||
Daniel Owen James (born 10 November 1997) is a professionalfootballer who plays as awinger forPremier League clubLeeds United and theWales national team.
James made his professional debut forSwansea City in February 2018, and signed forManchester United in June 2019. He made 74 appearances for the club, before joining Leeds United in August 2021. He was loaned toFulham in the 2022–23 season.
James made his senior Wales debut in November 2018, having previously represented the nation at various youth levels, and was part of their squad atUEFA Euro 2020. James also helped Wales qualify for theFIFA World Cup in 2022 for the first time since 1958.
James was born inKingston upon Hull, East Riding of Yorkshire,[4] to Elaine and Kevan James.[5] He was raised in the nearby village ofSouth Cave[5] and attendedSouth Hunsley School inMelton.[4]
A highly regarded prospect of theHull City academy side, James joinedSwansea City in 2014 for an initial fee of £72,000,[6] immediately becoming part of their U18 academy side. By the 2016–17 season, James had become an integral part of the Swansea U23 side who gained promotion to the PDL Division 1, winning the league by an 11-point margin. Additionally, James contributed to the side winning the Premier League Cup, and reaching the semi-finals of the Premier League International Cup and the quarter-finals of theEFL Trophy.
Following his impressive displays in the development squad,[7] James was included in the first-team squad for the first time in January 2016 for the FA Cup defeat toOxford United.[8] Although James did not make an appearance off the bench, his progress was deemed sufficient for him to be offered a new three-year contract the following week.[9] He was again named on the bench for aPremier League fixture againstStoke City in October 2016.[10]
On 30 June 2017, James signed forLeague One clubShrewsbury Town onloan until the end of the season.[11] His loan deal was terminated by mutual consent on 31 August 2017, after he failed to force his way into the starting 11.[12] James' only inclusion in a matchday squad was as an unused substitute in anEFL Cup first round tie againstNottingham Forest.[13]
On 6 February 2018, he made his Swansea first-team debut as a late substitute, scoring in the 82nd minute of an 8–1 FA Cup victory overNotts County.[14]
He made his league debut for Swansea on 17 August 2018 in a 0–0 draw againstBirmingham City in theEFL Championship.[7] He scored his first league goal for the club on 24 November 2018 in a 4–1 home defeat againstNorwich City.[15] In December 2018, with James now a regular and one of the standout performers for Swansea,[16] managerGraham Potter revealed that the club were looking to open talks with James over a new contract.[17] Despite discussion of a move toLeeds United during the January 2019transfer window,[18][19] James was named in the starting line-up for Swansea against Birmingham City on 29 January, with James scoring his second goal of the season in a 3–3 draw.[20]
On 31 January 2019, with James expressing his desire to leave Swansea to join Leeds, a structured £10 million fee was agreed between the two clubs, James agreed terms and completed the medical at Leeds,[21] and was atElland Road conducting signing interviews and announcement photoshoots ahead of the deal being completed.[22] However, after speculation of a disagreement between Swansea owners and their chairman regarding the structure of the deal only an hour before the transfer window's 11 pm deadline, James was left at Elland Road awaiting the deal to be signed off by Swansea, with the window closing at 11 pm.[23]
After Swansea failed to complete the deal, James' agent said it was "very disappointing", stating: "Swansea made no attempt to keep the player and at the first sign of money they couldn't show him the door quickly enough."[24][25] At the end of the 2018–19 season, with Leeds missing out on automatic promotion, Leeds head coachMarcelo Bielsa said that he refused to blame the club for missing out on James, but said, "I'm not underlying[clarification needed] the importance of the absence of James".[26]
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On 6 June 2019, James underwent a medical with Premier League clubManchester United ahead of a transfer for a reported fee of £15 million with the potential for additional payments.[27] After agreeing a deal "in principle" on 7 June,[28] United announced the signing of James on a five-year contract on 12 June, with an option to extend for a further year.[29] He scored his first goal for the club on his competitive debut, coming on as a substitute to score United's final goal in a 4–0 win overChelsea.[30] He also scored in United's 2–1 loss againstCrystal Palace.[31] In only his fourth game for United he scored his third goal for the club in a 1–1 draw withSouthampton,[32] which was later voted goal of the month by United fans.[33] James was also voted United player of the month for August.[34] In March 2020, James ended a seven-month goal drought by scoring in a 5–0 win over Austrian teamLASK, the final game before thesuspension of football caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.[35]
On 20 December 2020, James scored his first league goal of the season in a 6–2 win againstLeeds United.[36] On 2 February 2021, he scored United's Premier League record-equalling goal in the9–0 home win against Southampton.[37]
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James signed forPremier League rivalsLeeds United on 31 August 2021 for an undisclosed fee on a five-year contract, having nearly joined the club two and a half years prior to the transfer.[38] Many news outlets were reporting the fee to be £25 million.[39] He scored his first Premier League goal for Leeds on 21 November, in the team's 2–1 loss at theTottenham Hotspur Stadium.[40] On 11 May 2022, James was sent off during Leeds's Premier League match againstChelsea for a challenge onMateo Kovačić.[41]
James scored 13 goals and added seven assists during James'first season in theChampionship with Leeds with Leeds, which saw them fall short of promotion to the Premier League, losing 1–0 toSouthampton in theChampionship play-off final on 26 May 2024.[42][43] In James'second season in the Championship with Leeds, he scored 12 goals in the league, which was second on the squad, only toJoël Piroe's 19, adding nine assists, which was third on the team, behindManor Solomon andJunior Firpo.[44] On 3 May 2025, James won theChampionship title with Leeds and was promoted back to the Premier League with a 2–1 win againstPlymouth Argyle atHome Park.[45] The following day, James was named Leeds United Player of the Year for the 2024–25 season.[46]
On 1 September 2022, James was loaned out to Premier League clubFulham until the end of the 2022–23 season.[47]
Born in England, James qualifies to play for Wales through his late father, Kevan,[48] who was born inAberdare.[7] James scored at theToulon Tournament playing forWales U20 in a 1–0 win overBahrain U20 after he won and scored the resulting penalty.[49]
_(Daniel_James).jpg)
James received his first senior call-up for the2018 FIFA World Cup qualifying game againstSerbia in 2017 by managerChris Coleman[7] and subsequently made his full Wales debut under Coleman's successor,Ryan Giggs, in a match againstAlbania in November 2018, playing the first 58 minutes of the game.[50] James scored his first Wales goal in only his second cap, netting the only goal of the game in the opening minutes againstSlovakia in his competitive home debut.[51] During the September international break, James netted the only goal in a friendly win againstBelarus.[52] In May 2021, he was selected for the Wales squad for the delayedUEFA Euro 2020 tournament.[53] In November 2022, he was named in the Walessquad for the2022 FIFA World Cup.[54] On 26 March 2024, he missed the deciding penalty as Wales lost theshoot-out againstPoland in theUEFA Euro 2024 qualifying play-off final and failed to advance to the official tournament.[55]
James can play as awinger, and also as anattacking midfielder.[10] He is known for his pace and skill.[16]
| Club | Season | League | FA Cup | EFL Cup | Europe | Other | Total | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Swansea City U21 | 2016–17[56] | — | — | — | — | 3[a] | 1 | 3 | 1 | |||||
| 2017–18[57] | — | — | — | — | 1[a] | 0 | 1 | 0 | ||||||
| Total | — | — | — | — | 4 | 1 | 4 | 1 | ||||||
| Swansea City | 2017–18[58] | Premier League | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | — | — | — | 1 | 1 | |||
| 2018–19[59] | Championship | 33 | 4 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 38 | 5 | |||
| Total | 33 | 4 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 39 | 6 | ||||
| Shrewsbury Town (loan) | 2017–18[58] | League One | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| Manchester United | 2019–20[60] | Premier League | 33 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 6[b] | 1 | — | 46 | 4 | |
| 2020–21[57] | Premier League | 15 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 9[c] | 2 | — | 26 | 5 | ||
| 2021–22[61] | Premier League | 2 | 0 | — | — | — | — | 2 | 0 | |||||
| Total | 50 | 6 | 4 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 15 | 3 | — | 74 | 9 | |||
| Leeds United | 2021–22[61] | Premier League | 32 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | — | 35 | 4 | ||
| 2022–23[62] | Premier League | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 5 | 0 | |||
| 2023–24[63] | Championship | 40 | 13 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 3[d] | 0 | 46 | 13 | ||
| 2024–25[64] | Championship | 36 | 12 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 37 | 12 | |||
| 2025–26[65] | Premier League | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 1 | 0 | |||
| Total | 113 | 29 | 4 | 0 | 4 | 0 | — | 3 | 0 | 124 | 29 | |||
| Fulham (loan) | 2022–23[62] | Premier League | 20 | 2 | 3 | 1 | — | — | — | 23 | 3 | |||
| Career total | 216 | 41 | 16 | 3 | 10 | 0 | 15 | 3 | 7 | 1 | 264 | 48 | ||
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wales | 2018 | 1 | 0 |
| 2019 | 9 | 2 | |
| 2020 | 7 | 1 | |
| 2021 | 13 | 2 | |
| 2022 | 11 | 0 | |
| 2023 | 8 | 1 | |
| 2024 | 6 | 1 | |
| 2025 | 6 | 2 | |
| Total | 61 | 9 | |
| No. | Date | Venue | Cap | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 24 March 2019 | Cardiff City Stadium, Cardiff, Wales | 2 |  Slovakia | 1–0 | 1–0 | UEFA Euro 2020 qualification |
| 2 | 9 September 2019 | 6 |  Belarus | Friendly | |||
| 3 | 18 November 2020 | 17 |  Finland | 2–0 | 3–1 | 2020–21 UEFA Nations League B | |
| 4 | 30 March 2021 | 19 |  Czech Republic | 1–0 | 1–0 | 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification | |
| 5 | 8 October 2021 | Sinobo Stadium,Prague, Czech Republic | 27 | 2–2 | 2–2 | ||
| 6 | 16 June 2023 | Cardiff City Stadium, Cardiff, Wales | 44 |  Armenia | 1–0 | 2–4 | UEFA Euro 2024 qualification |
| 7 | 21 March 2024 | 50 | Finland | 4–1 | 4–1 | ||
| 8 | 22 March 2025 | 56 |  Kazakhstan | 1–0 | 3–1 | 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification | |
| 9 | 18 November 2025 | 61 |  North Macedonia | 4–1 | 7–1 |
Swansea City U23
Manchester United
Leeds United
Individual
Wales squads | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| |||||||
