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Chelsea and England star Lauren James continues to write her own headlines

You know Chelsea’s captain.

But did you know that his sister won a title with England and a treble with Chelsea? Who is Lauren James?Reece James is well known to all fans of English football.

Although unfortunately prone to frequent injuries, he remains one of the key players for London’s Chelsea, a club he has been with since his academy days.

The England national team also relies on him, as he has represented his country since youth level.

But you may not know that Reece has a sister, Lauren, who also wears the shirt of the London giants and, just a few weeks ago, lifted the European Championship trophy.

Dutch coach Sarina Wiegman relied on her as one of the main pillars of England’s attack.

And rightly so – James started every match at the Euros and scored two goals.

Overall, Lauren James may well be more successful in terms of trophies than her brother.

While Chelsea’s men last won the Premier League title in the 2016/17 season, the women’s team celebrated their sixth consecutive league title this year, complemented by two domestic cups.

The only thing missing is a Women’s Champions League trophy.

That has only ever been won in England by Arsenal – first in 2007, and again this year.

Lauren also began her youth career at Chelsea’s academy as a six-year-old, just like her older brother – something she had dreamed of since she was a little girl.

One of her childhood heroes was Eden Hazard, the Belgian winger whose best years were associated with the blue jersey.

Early on, the siblings even played together in the same team.

“Lauren and I played together in several tournaments on the same team.

It was great to play with her and win together,” Reece recalled years later.

From rivals back homeLater, however, she moved to Chelsea’s biggest city rivals, Arsenal, where she made her first senior appearances.

She then moved north to Manchester United, where she showcased her goalscoring ability by hitting the net 22 times in 40 matches.

After three seasons with Manchester United, she returned to where it all began – Chelsea – where she has been since 2021.

Together with Reece, they became the first brother and sister to represent the same club and the national team at the highest level.

And again, Lauren comes out ahead of her brother when it comes to silverware.

In 2022, when the Lionesses under captain Leah Williamson won England’s first-ever European Championship, and did so at a sold-out Wembley, Lauren unfortunately wasn’t on the squad list.

This year, in 2025, when England managed to build on that success, James was included as a starter.

Over the years, she has established herself in the blue shirt as one of the most prominent players in English football.

Still, Lauren considers her older brother her biggest football inspiration.

The siblings were introduced to football by their father Nigel, who is a UEFA-licensed coach.

Neither he nor their mother, Emma, a nurse, ever made distinctions and supported all their children equally, whether that meant driving them to training or cheering from the sidelines.

And clearly, that approach paid off.

Very few parents can boast of having two children succeeding at the very top of professional sport.