Real Madrid star Jude Bellingham plays for arguably the biggest club in world football, and with that, comes no shortage of media attention. The first Englishman to join the club since David Beckham left, the 21-year-old has not had quite the same impact, but has immediately joined the ranks of the rich and famous in the Spanish capital, with the trials and tribulations alongside it.
Bellingham has seemed comfortable in the spotlight though, and locals have been surprised by his willingness to blend in around the city – at least as much as possible. Before Christmas in his first season, Bellingham was spotted with his mother going shopping on Gran Via, the main street in the centre of Madrid. He was also seen enjoying tapas on a terrace with his family in La Latina, a popular neighbourhood for nightlife and food.
Most recently his activity off the pitch has gained attention for his supposed romantic life. Rumoured to be dating American model Ashlyn Castro, the 27-year-old has been seen on several occasions with Bellingham around Madrid, and was seen in the stands with him during Real Madrid’s 2-0 win against Girona at the Santiago Bernabeu which he was suspended for.
However Castro has not made much of the extra attention she has received on account of spending time with Bellingham. A number of false rumours about her dating history emerged on social media, linking her romantically to other celebrities such as Lewis Hamilton, Michael B. Jordan and Jamie Foxx. One even suggested that she was a professional escort.
This week Castro took to TikTok to debunk these rumours, and was clearly not happy with the speculation that had been following her around, as highlighted by The Mirror.
‘I don’t even know where to begin, but I’m going to try my best to just get into it. It makes me super uncomfortable talking on camera about my personal life. I’ve never even really spoken on camera too many times, so bear with me. Every angle you can think of, people have attacked me, harassed me, been so disrespectful. It’s just been too much.”
“Let’s talk about this dating history. I’ve had three boyfriends over the last eight years. In 2017, I was in my very first relationship and he’s a public figure, so because of that, I’ve dealt with people talking about me, making up things about me.
“There was nothing on the internet about me prior, so people kind of just made up a bunch of things to justify hating me because of who I was dating at the time. And then over the last six years after that, I’ve dated two people. So three relationships in total.”