 James withChelsea in 2025 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Reece Lewis James[1] | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Date of birth | (1999-12-08)8 December 1999 (age 25)[2] | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Redbridge, London, England | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 5 ft 10 in (1.79 m)[3] | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Position | Right-back[4] | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Team information | |||||||||||||||||||||||
Current team | Chelsea | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Number | 24 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Youth career | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Kew Park Rangers | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| –2006 | Epsom Eagles | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2006–2007 | Chelsea | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2007–2008 | Fulham | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2008–2018 | Chelsea | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Senior career* | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| 2018– | Chelsea | 139 | (9) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| 2018–2019 | →Wigan Athletic (loan) | 45 | (3) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| International career‡ | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2017 | England U18 | 3 | (0) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| 2017–2018 | England U19 | 7 | (0) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| 2017–2019 | England U20 | 12 | (0) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| 2019 | England U21 | 2 | (0) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| 2020– | England | 22 | (1) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
| |||||||||||||||||||||||
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 13:37, 22 November 2025 (UTC) ‡ National team caps and goals as of 23:53, 13 November 2025 (UTC) | |||||||||||||||||||||||
Reece Lewis James (born 8 December 1999) is an English professionalfootballer who plays as aright-back forPremier League clubChelsea, which hecaptains, and theEngland national team.
James joined the Chelsea academy as a youth and turned professional in 2017, a season where hecaptained the under-18s to victory in theFA Youth Cup and was named Academy Player of the Season. A productiveloan spell withWigan Athletic of theChampionship saw him promoted to the Chelsea first team upon his return in 2019. He won theUEFA Champions League,UEFA Super Cup andFIFA Club World Cup with the club in 2021, and was appointed captain in 2023. He led Chelsea to victory at theUEFA Europa Conference League andFIFA Club World Cup in 2025.
After representingEngland at various youth levels, James made his senior debut in 2020, and went on to appear atUEFA Euro 2020.
James was born inRedbridge, Greater London,[5] growing up inMortlake,[6] and attendingIsleworth and Syon School.[7] He is from a family all involved in football; his older brother played,[6] his sister,Lauren, is also a professional footballer,[8][9] and signed forChelsea Women in July 2021,[10][11] and their father Nigel is a football coach.[12] James grew up as a Chelsea fan, withDidier Drogba his favourite player.[6]
He is of Grenadian and Dominican descent through his father, and English descent through his mother.[13][14]
Starting his grassroots playing career at Kew Park Rangers and Epsom Eagles, James signed withChelsea at the age of six,[15][16] and had a short spell at West London rivalsFulham when he was seven.[17] He played as a striker idolizingDidier Drogba in his early teens, but was moved to the midfield, and later to aright-back position where he struggled at first.[15] He turned professional with Chelsea in March 2017.[18] During the 2017–18 season hecaptained the under-18s to win theFA Youth Cup and was named Academy Player of the Season.[18] He signed a new four-year contract with the club in June 2018.[18]
In June 2018, James joinedChampionship clubWigan Athletic onloan for the2018–19 season.[19] He made his first-team debut on 4 August, starting in Wigan's first game of the season, helping his side to a 3–2 home victory overSheffield Wednesday.[20] He scored his first goal for Wigan on 4 November, scoring the first goal with afree kick in the sixth minute of a 2–1 home loss toLeeds United.[21] In March 2019, he was selected to the 2018–19 Championship Team of the Season.[22] He won three awards at Wigan Athletic's end of season awards, including Player of the Year.[23]
On 25 September 2019, James made his debut for Chelsea after returning from injury. He scored his first goal and assisted two in a 7–1 win overGrimsby Town in the third round of the2019–20 EFL Cup.[24] James became Chelsea's youngest ever goalscorer in theUEFA Champions League when he scored the fourth goal of their 4–4 comeback draw withAjax on 5 November.[25] He signed a long-term contract extension with Chelsea on 16 January 2020.[26]
On 14 September 2020, James scored his firstPremier League goal, in a 3–1 win for Chelsea againstBrighton & Hove Albion.[27] On 5 December, James made his 50th appearance for Chelsea in all competitions in the club's 3–1 league win over Leeds United.[28]
In January 2021, James was subject toracist abuse online.[29][30] In March, he deleted hisInstagram account in response to the abuse he received.[31] On 29 May, James won his first-ever Champions League as Chelsea won 1–0 againstManchester City in thefinal inPorto.[32]
On 28 August 2021, James was sent off at the end of the first half of a 1–1 draw againstLiverpool due to a handball incident.[33] He scored two goals in the second half of a 3–0 win overNewcastle United atSt James' Park on 30 October.[34] At the end of the season James was nominated for thePFA Young Player of the Year award.[35]
On 5 September 2022, James signed a new six-year contract with Chelsea, committing to the club until June 2028.[36][37] His performances were praised in October 2022,[38] although later that month he suffered a knee injury,[39] and had to see a specialist doctor.[40] He was injured on his first game back, on 27 December 2022, being substituted after 53 minutes.[41] he was ruled out of play for a further four weeks.[42] On 25 April 2023, Chelsea announced that James would miss the rest of the season with a hamstring problem.[43]
Following the departure ofCésar Azpilicueta, James was namedclub captain of Chelsea on 9 August 2023.[16] He suffered a hamstring injury early in the season,[44] which re-occurred in November 2023 after he returned to play.[45] In late December 2023, he had surgery to fix the recurring hamstring injury.[46] James returned on 11 May 2024 as a substitute againstNottingham Forest, providing the game-winning assist toNicolas Jackson in the 3–2 victory atCity Ground.[47]
On 11 May 2024, James was shown a red card for violent conduct in a 2–1 win atBrighton & Hove Albion, meaning he would miss the final fixture of the 2023–24 season and the first three matches of the 2024–25 season.[48][49]
James began the 2024–25 season with a number of injuries.[50] After returning to play in October 2024, James was criticised by Chelsea managerEnzo Maresca for a lack of effort.[51][52] He suffered a further hamstring injury in November 2024.[53]
On 11 January 2025, James returned to the Chelsea team for theFA Cup third round tie withMorecambe, playing the first half of the 5–0 win. Three days later, he scored a 95th minute equaliser from a free kick after appearing as a 56th-minute substitute in a 2–2 draw withBournemouth.[54] This was James' first Premier League goal since August 2022, when he scored in a 2–2 draw withTottenham Hotspur. James said his time injured had been "lonely and frustrating".[55]
On 28 May 2025, James lifted his first trophy as Chelsea captain after coming on as a half-time substitute in the2025 UEFA Conference League final victory againstReal Betis.[56] The following month, he captained Chelsea at the2025 FIFA Club World Cup, a tournament they went on to win by beatingParis Saint-Germain 3–0 inthe final on 13 July.[57]
James has represented England at youth level fromunder-18 up tounder-21.[58][59][60] In May 2017, James was included in theunder-20 squad for the2017 Toulon Tournament.[61] He started in the final as England beat theIvory Coast to retain their title.[62] In July, James was part of theunder-19 squad that won the2017 UEFA European Under-19 Championship.[63] He started in the semi-final against theCzech Republic.[64]
James was a member of the under-20 squad that travelled to the2019 Toulon Tournament and was carried off on a stretcher with ankle ligament damage during the first half of the final group game defeat to Chile on 7 June 2019.[65] On 4 October, James was included in the under-21 squad for the first time.[66] He made his under-21 debut during the 3–02021 UEFA European Under-21 Championship qualification victory away toAlbania on 15 November.[67]
On 5 October 2020, James was called up for the first time to thesenior team by managerGareth Southgate following an injury toRaheem Sterling.[68] He made his debut on 8 October atWembley Stadium, coming on as a 58th-minute substitute forKieran Trippier in a 3–0 friendly win overWales.[69][70] His first start came in a 1–0 loss toDenmark in theUEFA Nations League, where he was sent off for dissent after the final whistle.[71]
In June 2021, James was named in England's 26-man squad for the postponedUEFA Euro 2020.[72] He made one appearance at the tournament, playing the full match againstScotland in a 0–0 draw during the group stage.[73]
James made three appearances for England during the2022 FIFA World Cup qualifying campaign and five appearances in the2022–23 UEFA Nations League. However, he was ruled out of the2022 FIFA World Cup with a knee injury in November 2022.[74] He later stated he was "devastated" to be excluded from the England squad.[75]
In March 2023, James returned to the England squad forUEFA Euro 2024 qualifiers againstItaly andUkraine. After making a five-minute substitute appearance in the 2–1 win in Italy on 23 March, James withdrew from the squad due to a hamstring issue.[76]
After a two-year absence, James returned to the England squad for2026 FIFA World Cup qualification matches againstAlbania andLatvia.[77] He appeared as a stoppage-time substitute in the match against Albania on 21 March,[78] before starting at right back and scoring his first senior international goal against Latvia three days later.[79]
James was called up again for October matches againstWales andLatvia, but later withdrew due to injury and was replaced byNico O'Reilly.[80]
In August 2020, James made a personal donation and posted a link on his social media accounts to a Crowdfunder site which was looking to boost Wigan's funds; in a bid to save his former loan club. He wrote in the post 'Come on let's help @laticsofficial out' in a bid to encourage others to follow.[81]
In January 2021,Marcus Rashford praised James, along with his teammateMason Mount, for their "amazing" charitable work. James had spent the past 18 months volunteering with a London-based charity,The Felix Project.[82]
James credits his father, Nigel James, and Chelsea youth team coaches Frank O'Brien,Joe Edwards, andJody Morris as having major influence on his career.[15] Reece and his sisterLauren are the first brother and sister to represent England at senior level in the modern era.[83]
James is a fan of fashion shows, and is friends with F1 driverLewis Hamilton.[6]
James began playing as a striker, moving to become a winger, then a midfielder, before becoming a right back.[6] His former manager at Chelsea,Thomas Tuchel, described him as "strong and influential".[84] For part of his career he had awing-back partnership withBen Chilwell at both club and international level.[85]
| Club | Season | League | FA Cup | EFL Cup | Europe | Other | Total | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Chelsea U23/U21 | 2016–17[86] | — | — | — | — | 1[a] | 0 | 1 | 0 | |||||
| 2017–18[87] | — | — | — | — | 6[a] | 1 | 6 | 1 | ||||||
| Total | — | — | — | — | 7 | 1 | 7 | 1 | ||||||
| Chelsea | 2018–19[88] | Premier League | 0 | 0 | — | — | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | |||
| 2019–20[89] | Premier League | 24 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 6[b] | 1 | 0 | 0 | 37 | 2 | |
| 2020–21[90] | Premier League | 32 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10[b] | 0 | — | 47 | 1 | ||
| 2021–22[91] | Premier League | 26 | 5 | 3 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 6[b] | 1 | 0 | 0 | 39 | 6 | |
| 2022–23[92] | Premier League | 16 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8[b] | 1 | — | 24 | 2 | ||
| 2023–24[93] | Premier League | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 11 | 0 | |||
| 2024–25[94] | Premier League | 19 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7[c] | 1 | 5[d] | 1 | 32 | 3 | |
| 2025–26[95] | Premier League | 12 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3[b] | 0 | — | 15 | 1 | ||
| Total | 139 | 9 | 14 | 0 | 7 | 1 | 40 | 4 | 5 | 1 | 205 | 15 | ||
| Wigan Athletic (loan) | 2018–19[88] | Championship | 45 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 46 | 3 | ||
| Career total | 184 | 12 | 15 | 0 | 7 | 1 | 40 | 4 | 12 | 2 | 258 | 19 | ||
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| England | 2020 | 4 | 0 |
| 2021 | 6 | 0 | |
| 2022 | 5 | 0 | |
| 2023 | 1 | 0 | |
| 2024 | 0 | 0 | |
| 2025 | 6 | 1 | |
| Total | 22 | 1 | |
| No. | Date | Venue | Cap | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 24 March 2025 | Wembley Stadium, London, England | 18 |  Latvia | 1–0 | 3–0 | 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification | [79] |
Chelsea U18
Chelsea
England U19
England U20
England
Individual
Reece James and Ben Chilwell were unable to help their teammates in the Club World Cup due to injuries. But even without their first-choice wing-backs, Chelsea claimed the title and are now champions of the world. And both James and Chilwell received their Club World Cup medals!
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a Ramsdale replaced D. Henderson after England's first match. | ||
