_(cropped).jpg) Gilmour playing forNorwich City in 2021 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Billy Clifford Gilmour[1] | ||
| Date of birth | (2001-06-11)11 June 2001 (age 24)[2] | ||
| Place of birth | Irvine, North Ayrshire, Scotland[3] | ||
| Height | 5 ft 7 in (1.70 m)[3] | ||
| Position | Defensive midfielder | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Napoli | ||
| Number | 6 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 2009–2017 | Rangers | ||
| 2017–2019 | Chelsea | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2019–2022 | Chelsea | 11 | (0) |
| 2021–2022 | →Norwich City (loan) | 24 | (0) |
| 2022–2024 | Brighton & Hove Albion | 46 | (0) |
| 2024– | Napoli | 36 | (1) |
| International career‡ | |||
| 2015–2016 | Scotland U15 | 1 | (0) |
| 2016–2017 | Scotland U16 | 1 | (0) |
| 2017–2018 | Scotland U17 | 7 | (2) |
| 2017–2019 | Scotland U19 | 7 | (3) |
| 2018–2021 | Scotland U21 | 12 | (1) |
| 2021– | Scotland | 43 | (2) |
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 23:50, 15 February 2026 (UTC) ‡ National team caps and goals as of 12 October 2025 | |||
Billy Clifford Gilmour (born 11 June 2001) is a Scottish professionalfootballer who plays as adefensive midfielder forSerie A clubNapoli and theScotland national team. He is considered one of Scotland's best players, particularly in relation to his passing skills and his style of midfield play.[4][5]
Gilmour spent three months with Celtic at an early age before moving toRangers,[6] where he developed in the club'sacademy and trained with the first-team squad at the age of 15. He joinedChelsea in 2017 after turning down a professional contract with Rangers, made 22 appearances, and was on the bench for theirUEFA Champions League andFA Cup finals in 2021. He spent a season on loan atNorwich City where the club were relegated, before he signed withBrighton & Hove Albion on a permanent basis in September 2022. Gilmour signed for Italian side Napoli on a permanent deal on deadline day in August 2024, winning theScudetto in his first season.
Gilmour represented Scotland at all youth level fromunder-15,under-16,under-17,under-19 andunder-21 levels before making hissenior debut in 2021. He was selected for theirEuro 2020 squad later that year, and was subsequently selected forEuro 2024.
Gilmour was born on 11 June 2001 atAyrshire Central Hospital inIrvine,North Ayrshire[3], and was raised in nearbyArdrossan. His father, William Gilmour, served with theRoyal Navy and playedjunior football forArdrossan Winton Rovers. Gilmour attended Stanley Primary School in Ardrossan andGrange Academy inKilmarnock,[7] where he was part of theScottish Football Association (SFA) Performance School programme.[8][9] He listedCesc Fàbregas,Luka Modrić andAndrés Iniesta as his football role models.[10]
Gilmour spent three months at an early age withCeltic, before moving toRangers due to the logistics of attending training.[6] He made his debut for the under-20 development team in December 2016 at the age of 15, and was invited to train with the first-team squad the following month by managerMark Warburton.[11][12] Gilmour was given a squad number and, following Warburton's departure from the club, was twice included in the provisional squad for theScottish Cup matches byRangers caretaker managerGraeme Murty.[13]
The next Rangers manager,Pedro Caixinha, described Gilmour as a player with a "bright future" and held talks with the player's family in an attempt to persuade him to stay with the club.[14][15] Rangers, however, announced in May 2017 that they had reached an agreement for Gilmour to joinChelsea for a "significant fee".[16] Reports suggested that Chelsea would pay an initial development fee of around £500,000, with potential further payments dependent on his progress.[17] SFA Performance DirectorMalky Mackay had advised Gilmour and his family that he should stay at Rangers, as he would have had more chance of gaining first team experience. Mackay said, "I really hope he goes out onloan quickly to someone and keeps progressing".[18]
Gilmour became officially contracted to Chelsea in July 2017, following his 16th birthday.[19] He joined the club'sunder-18 squad, making a goalscoring debut in anUnder-18 Premier League match againstArsenal during September 2017,[20] and going on to score in each of his first three appearances.[21] In July 2018, after turning 17, Gilmour signed his first professional contract with Chelsea.[22]
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Newly-appointed Chelsea managerFrank Lampard gave Gilmour his senior debut on 10 July 2019, in a pre-season friendly againstBohemians in Dublin.[23] His first appearance in a competitive matchday squad for the first-team came in the2019 UEFA Super Cup againstLiverpool, when he was an unused substitute.[24]
He made hisPremier League debut on 31 August againstSheffield United, coming on in the 84th minute forTammy Abraham. He made his full debut on 25 September, playing the full 90 minutes in a 7–1EFL Cup win againstGrimsby Town.[25] Gilmour was added to the Chelsea first-team squad on a permanent basis in February 2020.[26] He was widely praised for his performance in a 2–0 win against Liverpool in anFA Cup tie on 3 March.[27] Gilmour later made his first Premier League start later that week on 8 March againstEverton, earning Man of the Match honours in a 4–0 win.[28] He did not play much for the next six months or so, due to the lockdown caused byCOVID-19 and a knee injury.[29] Gilmour made 11 appearances for the Chelsea first team during the 2019–20 season,[30] and was awarded the club'sAcademy Player of the Year award.[31]
In September 2020, Gilmour took the 23 squad number for 2020–21 season afterMichy Batshuayi returned toCrystal Palace on loan.[32] Gilmour returned to the Chelsea starting lineup on 8 December 2020, when he made his firstChampions League start in a 1–1 draw withKrasnodar.[33] UnderThomas Tuchel, Gilmour featured periodically. He was an unused substitute as Chelsea defeatedManchester City 1–0 in the2021 UEFA Champions League Final on 29 May.[34]
In July 2021, Gilmour joined fellow Premier League clubNorwich City on a season-long loan.[35] Gilmour cited fellow Scotland internationalGrant Hanley as an influencing factor in his decision to join the club.[36] He played 28 times for Norwich during the 2021–22 season, but the team finished last in the2021–22 Premier League and were relegated.[37]
In June 2022, Chelsea exercised an option to extend Gilmour's contract to the end of the 2023–24 season.[37]
On 1 September 2022, Gilmour transferred to fellow Premier League clubBrighton & Hove Albion on a four-year deal.[38] He made his debut three days later, coming on as a 93rd-minute substitute forMoisés Caicedo in the 5–2 home win overLeicester.[39] Gilmour made his first Brighton start on 9 November, playing the whole match of the 3–1EFL Cup third round victory away at Arsenal, assistingTariq Lamptey's goal.[40] His first Premier League start for Brighton came on his sixth appearance, playing the whole match and picking up a yellow card in the 4–2 home loss against Arsenal on 31 December.[41]
After almost three months without an appearance, on 29 April 2023, Gilmour played the whole of the 6–0 home thrashing ofWolverhampton Wanderers, Brighton's biggest Premier League victory;[42] he was also selected to start in subsequent wins overManchester United at home and Arsenal away.[43] Gilmour and Brighton finished the season 6th in Premier League, which qualified them for theEuropa League for the first time in the club's history.[44]
On 21 September 2023, Gilmour started in Brighton's first European match in the club's history, againstAEK Athens.[44]
On 30 August 2024, Gilmour joinedSerie A sideNapoli, signing a five-year contract for a reported transfer fee of £12 million plus £4 million in add-ons.[45] His international teammateScott McTominay joined Napoli from Manchester United on the same day.[46] By January 2025, he seemed to have lost his place to teammateStanislav Lobotka,[47] but returned to the starting lineup in March.[48]
Napoli won Serie A on the final day of the season, giving Gilmour and compatriot McTominay the first league titles of their careers.[49]
On 22 September 2025, Gilmour scored the first goal of his club career when he opened the scoring for Napoli in their 3–2 win overPisa.[50][51]
_(gilmour).jpg)
Gilmour played for theScotland under-16s in the 2016Victory Shield tournament.[52] He made hisScotland under-17 debut againstItaly in August 2017, and scored his first international goal in a 2–1 defeat againstEngland two days later.[53][54]Under-21 debut followed when he featured in a 1–0 win againstFrance at the2018 Toulon Tournament,[55] and won theRevelation of the Tournament award after helping Scotland to a fourth-placed finish.[56]
Gilmour was included in theScotland forUEFA Euro 2020 bySteve Clarke.[57] He made his full international debut on 2 June 2021, coming off the bench in the 81st minute of a pre-tournament friendly against theNetherlands.[58] Gilmour made his first start for Scotland in a goalless draw againstEngland on 18 June,[59] and was awarded man of the match by UEFA.[60][61][62] He then tested positive forCOVID-19, meaning that he missed Scotland's final group game againstCroatia.[63][64][65]
Gilmour remained in the squad for Scotland's continuing2022 World Cup qualifiers in September, starting all five games againstDenmark,Moldova,Austria,Israel and theFaroe Islands. His performances were widely acclaimed, with him winning man of the match in the 1–0 victory over Moldova atHampden.[66]
On 17 October 2023, Gilmour scored his first career goal in a 4–1 friendly loss toFrance inLille.[67]
On 7 June 2024, Gilmour was named in Scotland's squad for theUEFA Euro 2024 finals in Germany.[68] A week later, he came on as a 67th-minute substitute forCallum McGregor in the opening match of the tournament, where Scotland lost 5–1 to hostsGermany.[69] He went on to start against bothSwitzerland andHungary as Scotland finished bottom ofGroup A with one point from three matches.[70][71]
Gilmour gained his 40th Scotland cap on 9 June 2025 as Scotland beat Liechtenstein 4–0 in Vaduz.[72]
In May 2023,TikTok model Orla Melissa Sloan pleaded guilty to stalking Gilmour and his former Chelsea teammateMason Mount, as well as harassingBen Chilwell.[73][74]
| Club | Season | League | National cup[a] | League cup[b] | Europe | Other | Total | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Chelsea U21 | 2018–19 | — | — | — | — | 5[c] | 0 | 5 | 0 | |||||
| 2019–20 | — | — | — | — | 2[c] | 0 | 2 | 0 | ||||||
| 2020–21 | — | — | — | — | 1[c] | 0 | 1 | 0 | ||||||
| Total | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 8 | 0 | ||
| Chelsea | 2019–20[76] | Premier League | 6 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 11 | 0 |
| 2020–21[77] | Premier League | 5 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2[d] | 0 | — | 11 | 0 | ||
| Total | 11 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 22 | 0 | ||
| Norwich City (loan) | 2021–22[78] | Premier League | 24 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | — | 28 | 0 | ||
| Brighton & Hove Albion | 2022–23[79] | Premier League | 14 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | — | 17 | 0 | ||
| 2023–24[80] | Premier League | 30 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 8[e] | 0 | — | 41 | 0 | ||
| 2024–25[81] | Premier League | 2 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | — | — | 2 | 0 | ||||
| Total | 46 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 8 | 0 | — | 60 | 0 | |||
| Napoli | 2024–25[81] | Serie A | 26 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | — | — | 28 | 0 | |||
| 2025–26[82] | Serie A | 10 | 1 | 0 | 0 | — | 3[d] | 0 | 0 | 0 | 13 | 1 | ||
| Total | 36 | 1 | 2 | 0 | — | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 41 | 1 | |||
| Career total | 117 | 1 | 14 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 13 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 159 | 1 | ||
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Scotland | 2021 | 10 | 0 |
| 2022 | 6 | 0 | |
| 2023 | 7 | 1 | |
| 2024 | 13 | 1 | |
| 2025 | 7 | 0 | |
| Total | 43 | 2 | |
| No. | Date | Venue | Cap | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 17 October 2023 | Stade Pierre-Mauroy,Villeneuve-d'Ascq, France | 22 |  France | 1–0 | 1–4 | Friendly |
| 2 | 5 September 2024 | Hampden Park,Glasgow, Scotland | 31 |  Poland | 1–2 | 2–3 | 2024–25 UEFA Nations League A |
Chelsea Youth
Chelsea
Napoli
Individual
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