In this week’s DIVA Dating Digest, we take a look at this football power couple
BY ELLA GAUCI, IMAGE VIA INSTAGRAM (_JESSLCARTER)
Here at DIVA, there is nothing we love more than a football power couple. Jess Carter and Ann Katrin have a love story made for a romance novel. Two footballers who started as friends and then fell in love? Perfect for a Netflix film. Then said lovers have to play against each other on opposing teams at the Euros? Even better.
Jess Carter is one of our beloved Lionesses who saw the team take home the trophy in 2022. She currently plays for Chelsea FC as a defender. Ann Katrin plays alongside Jess for Chelsea FC as a goalie and also plays for the German national team.
So how did this couple find love off the pitch?
May 2016: The pair met when Ann-Katrin moved to Birmingham City FC
In an interview with The Guardian, the pair revealed that the first time they met was when Ann moved to Birmingham City FC where Jess was playing at the time. Despite being on the same team, Ann-Katrin revealed that they didn’t actually talk a whole lot when she first moved. “At the beginning, I thought she was arrogant, but as I got to know her, I found myself really drawn into her character,” Ann-Katrine explained.
February 2017: The pair move in together as friends
After living at home with her parents for long enough, Jess wanted to move out and quickly found out that Ann-Katrin was also looking for a housemate. The pair moved in together in Solihull as friends, quickly bonding over football and their taste in TV. “Jess was chilled and there was no drama at all,” Ann-Katrin told The Guardian. “We like all the same TV shows, so there’s never any fighting over the remote.”
At that point, Jess just considered Ann as a really good friend. “I had broken up with my boyfriend when I moved in, but as far as I knew I was straight,” she explained.
August 2017: Ann takes Jess out on a date
When Jess went away from training over the summer, Ann-Katrin realised that perhaps she felt more than just friendly emotions towards Jess. So when Jess came back home, Ann-Katrin asked Jess out for a dinner date. The catch? Jess didn’t realise that she meant it in a romantic way. “When she used the word ‘date’, I thought she meant as friends. Even when she paid, it didn’t click, because she’s one of the most generous people I know,” Jess explained to The Guardian.
When friends asked Jess how the evening went she started to think about if there could be something more. “Ann-Katrin has all the qualities I’d look for in a partner, but I’d never dated a woman before, so I hadn’t really thought about it like that,” she said.
A few days after their date, Ann-Katrin initiated a kiss gingerly, worried about how Jess would react. The pair didn’t acknowledge it for a few days, but when it happened again they sat down to have a conversation about it.
“I definitely sensed something was shifting, but it wasn’t until we kissed that I really thought about things in a different way,” Jess said. “Ann is not a serial dater, she needs to be emotionally invested. So for her to kiss me was a big thing. I cared about her so much as a friend, but I wasn’t clear on romantic feelings at the start.”
However, within months the pair had said “I love you” and were a fully-fledged couple.
June 2018: Jess moves to London to play for Chelsea
After playing together at Birmingham City FC for two years, Jess was signed by Chelsea FC in 2018. Only a year later, Ann-Katrin also was signed to the team, meaning that the couple would play alongside each other once again.
August 2022: The couple play against each other at the 2022 Euros
In a game that had football fans hooked, Jess and Ann-Katrin went up against each other during the 2022 Euros. Forced to put their emotions aside, the two footballers showed a masterclass in the game. The Lionesses won the game 2-1 which made them the ultimate winners of the UEFA Women’s Euro 2022.
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