When actors date other actors, we’re far from surprised. In many ways, actors dating other people in the industry is a tale as old as time. But, when it comes to our favorite athletes, we’re always pleasantly surprised when they date each other.
Luckily, however, it happens more often than we might’ve thought. From athletes who found love with another who plays another sport, like Simone Biles and Jonathan Owens, Megan Rapinoe and Sue Bird, or Alex Morgan and Servando Carrasco, to athletes who found love inside their own sport, like Katie Boulter and Alex De Minaur or Red Gerard and Hailey Langland, athletes finding love with one another makes perfect sense. After all, not everyone can understand the effort and rigor it takes to become a professional athlete.
These sports legends have supported one another through major wins, grueling competitions and devastating losses. Some have even competed together at the Olympics and other major events.
Here are some of the most beloved couples in sports!
Simone Biles & Jonathan Owens
Simone Biles and her husband Jonathan Owens are proof that sometimes online dating can work out. Talking about their love story to The Wall Street Journal, the two opened up about chatting after matching on Raya in 2020.
“He would say I slid into his DMs,” Biles told the outlet. “I saw him and I was like, ‘Oh, he’s pretty cute,’ so I said hi … and then I saw that he was in the Houston area, so we started chatting a little bit, and then we went to hang out a week or two later.”
Two years later, on Valentine’s Day, the pair announced their engagement. “THE EASIEST YES,” the gymnast wrote on Instagram. “I can’t wait to spend forever & ever with you, you’re everything I dreamed of and more! let’s get married FIANCÉ 💍🥺🥲🤎 @jowens_3.”
On April 22, 2023, the couple got married.
At the 2024 Paris Olympics, Owens was spotted in Paris cheering for Biles at the 2024 Olympic Games. “Greatness 🐐 I love you so much baby ❤️🫶🏽💙,” Owens wrote on Instagram following her gold medal win. “You accomplish whatever you set your mind to, and do it with so much grace. 9-time Olympic medalist and counting!!!! So proud to be your husband 🤞🏽🥇.”
Patrick & Brittany Mahomes
While we all know Patrick Mahomes is one of the most accomplished NFL stars of all time, some might forget Brittany Mahomes was once a pro-athlete too. Brittany played at a collegiate level for the University of Texas at Tyler before going pro with at Icelandic club UMF Afturelding. In 2017, however, she retired.
In the meantime, Kansas City Chiefs star Patrick, who started dating Brittany in 2012 when they went to high school together, was by her side the entire time.
After eight years together, Patrick proposed to Brittany in 2020 at Arrowhead Stadium. A few weeks later, they announced they were expecting their first child, Sterling, who was born in February 2021.
In March 2022, the pair tied the knot in Hawaii. “10 Years with my Boo! Time to start over and start Celebrating our Marriage, oh & also our Rock Paper Scissors record 💖,” Brittany wrote on Instagram that same month. “Love you the most✨.”
In November 2022, they welcomed their second kid, son Patrick “Bronze” Mahomes III.
Most recently, they announced they’re expecting once again. “Round three, here we come 🤍,” Brittany wrote.
JJ Watt & Kealia Ohai
Former football star JJ Watt and soccer player Kealia Ohai Watt began dating back in 2016, and have been inseparable ever since.
At first, the two let rumors circulate for a while before confirming their relationship. In October 2016, however, they couldn’t hide it any longer. “The rumors are true. We are dating,” she said in the 2 Up Front podcast, per People. “I’ve known J.J. for a really long time, and we’ve always been great friends.”
Three years later, on May 26, 2019, they announced their engagement. “I’m the luckiest man in the world,” Watt wrote on X alongside pictures of the proposal.
In February 2020, the pair tied the knot in the Bahamas. “Best day of my life,” Watt wrote on Instagram. “Without question.”
On October 23, 2022, Watt and Ohai became parents as they welcomed their son, Koa James Watt. “Love and happiness have reached heights we never even knew existed,” the former NFL star wrote in the caption.
The two have shared snippets of their family of three on social media ever since.
Alex Morgan & Servando Carrasco
After meeting while playing soccer during their years at the University of California, Berkeley, NWSL star Alex Morgan and former professional soccer player Servando Carrasco instantly connected.
In 2013, a few years after the beginning of their professional careers, Carrasco popped the question. “Couldn’t be happier. #lifeisgood,” Morgan wrote on X at the time.
The pair later got married on New Year’s in 2014. “To be surrounded by our family and friends tonight in such a beautiful location, and on New Year’s Eve to boot, has just been magical,” Morgan told People of their Santa Barbara, California, occasion.
“We are both so happy, grateful and excited to start our lives together as Mr. and Mrs. Carrasco,” she added. “I truly married my best friend.”
On May 7, 2020, the pair welcomed their first child, a daughter named Charlie Elena, into the world.
Lauren & Jrue Holiday
Former U.S. soccer star Lauren Holiday and her husband, Celtics star Jrue Holiday, also met during college. The two first met while studying and playing for UCLA.
“And she was older than me, which was cool,” Jrue told ESPN. “I was a freshman, and I think she was a junior. At the time we were both with other people, but we did become friends, and months later, after I got drafted, we started dating.”
In 2012, the pair got engaged. A year later, they got married.
While pregnant with their first daughter, Jrue Tyler, Lauren was diagnosed with a benign brain tumor. After giving birth, Lauren had the tumor successfully removed, ABC reported.
“Every time I see this smile I’m reminded that joy does come in the morning,” Lauren wrote on Instagram in 2017. “Maybe not the next day, maybe not even the next month but it comes. I can’t imagine what heaven will be like if this is the joy I get to experience on earth.”
In 2020, they welcomed their son, Hendrix.
Sloane Stephens & Jozy Altidore
Tennis star Sloane Stephens met her match when she met soccer player Jozy Altidore. The pair first met when they attended middle school together and later reconnected in 2016. Years, they tied the knot in a lavish ceremony on New Year’s Day in 2022.
“We both have incredible crazy jobs and lives, and knowing that through it all, we have each other as our constant and true home base is such a comforting feeling,” Stephens told People after their wedding in 2022.
But, because of their busy schedules, they weren’t planning on taking their honeymoon just yet. “When you travel 40-plus weeks a year for work, all you want to do is come home to each other and enjoy the downtime,” she told the outlet. “We definitely will take a honeymoon at some point, but we’re both super busy with work!”
While the two have yet to have kids of their own, Stephens is a stepmom to Altidore’s son from a previous relationship. “Our son is nine and he’s great and makes me want to have more kids,” she told Cosmopolitan in June 2024. “I always knew I wanted to be a mom and have a big family. I love kids, so for me, becoming a stepmom was a very easy transition.”
Andrew East & Shawn Johnson
Andrew East’s brother Guy East proved to be one hell of a matchmaker when he set up his brother with his Team USA teammate and Olympic gymnast Shawn Johnson in 2012. After finally meeting, Johnson, who was competing on Dancing With the Stars at the time, took a few months before their second date. But, when the date came along, their second meeting became a four-day-long affair.
“I fell head over heels,” Johnson told E! News. “I was like, ‘Yeah, I could see myself with this guy.'”
Four months later, Johnson moved to Tennessee to be with him.
In July 2015, East proposed on the pitch of a baseball game. “Well I know it’s not a secret…. But I experienced the greatest surprise a girl could ever ask for today…” Johnson wrote on Instagram. “The love of my life @andrewdeast asked me to be his forever AND I SAID YES!!!!!!”
In 2016, the pair tied the knot in a beautiful ceremony in Tennessee. “I’ve found my guy,” Johnson told People. “And he’s my best friend, so making it official is exciting.”
Since then, East and Johnson have expanded their family and welcomed kids Drew, born in 2019, Jett, born in 2021, and Bear, born in December 2023.
Zach & Julie Ertz
Zach Ertz and Julie Ertz are another major sports power couple.
NFL tight end Zach Ertz first met his wife, former professional soccer player Julie Ertz, during their university years. And, a few long-distance years after, the pair tied the knot on March 26, 2017. “@zachertz my wonderful husband thank you for everything, for loving me unconditionally, for your amazing friendship, and for trying to keep up with me on the dance floor,” she wrote on Instagram after their big day. “Yesterday was EPIC!”
In 2022, they announced they welcomed their first baby. In August, they became parents. “Madden Matthew Ertz you are so loved,” Zach wrote on Instagram. “Beyond grateful to be your Dad. @julieertz and I can’t even put into words how blessed we are to be your parents. 🥹👶🏼💙”
In April 2024, they announced a new addition to their family. “Adding to the family Summer 2024!” Zach announced on Instagram.
Jennie Finch & Casey Daigle
USA former softball star Jennie Finch met her husband, MLB baseball player Casey Daigle, back in 2002. After breaking down all the stereotypes he had about what softball players looked like, Daigle was smitten.
Three years later, in 2005, they tied the knot.
Over the years, competing in competitive sports together was always a blessing. “You have a bad game and you come home and you don’t really want to talk on the phone, you don’t really want to do much except think about it and try to get over it,” Daigle told ESPN. “And she’s been in that same boat.”
Over the years, Finch and Daigle expanded their family with son Ace Shane, born in 2006, son Diesel Dean, born in 2011, and daughter Paisley Faye, born in 2013
Brie Bella & Bryan Danielson
WWE stars Brie Bella and Bryan Danielson (stage name Daniel Bryan) were meant to be. After meeting in the ring in 2010, and being part of a whole love-triangle storyline together, Bella and Danielson hit it off.
In September 2013, Danielson asked her to marry him.
“I have never in my life seen him so nervous, I’ve been by him when he’s gone out for WrestleMania and some really big things,” the Total Bellas star told E! News. “He got really, really nervous and he started talking about how long we’ve been together. He got down on one knee and compared our love. He said he’ll love me forever like the ocean goes on.”
A year later, they tied the knot in a televised ceremony. “I couldn’t have asked for a better man, best friend, father and husband to spend the rest of my life with,” Brie said in her vows. “Your humble heart and sensitive soul have made me a better person.”
In May 2017, they welcomed their first child together, a daughter named Birdie Joe. Three years later, in August 2020, they welcomed their son, Buddy Dessert.
David Lee & Caroline Wozniacki
When former NBA star David Lee met Danish professional tennis player Caroline Wozniacki at a dinner party of a mutual friend in 2015, sparks immediately started flying. The two chatted all night, went to Wozniacki’s place, continued chatting away, and Lee went to bed in her guest room, per Vogue Scandinavia.
Four years later, and surely some chat-filled nights since, the two got married in a luxurious ceremony in Tuscany, Italy.
“The dedication you have to tennis, your daily routine, everything you do to be the champion that you are, it’s the most amazing thing I’ve ever seen,” Lee told Wozniacki at the wedding. “Even above that is the class and the principles that you live by, and that means more than any match you could ever win, any tournament you could ever win, and it’s for that reason that young girls look up to you, the whole world looks up to you for what you do and what you stand for, and why I look up to you so much.”
“As a man you’ve made me a better person,” he continued. “I love you with all of my heart and promise to treat you like the most special woman now and forever.”
In 2021, Wozniacki and Lee welcomed their first child, Olivia. In October 2022, they welcomed their second child, son James.
Tobin Heath & Christen Press
Team USA soccer stars Tobin Heath and Christen Press recently revealed they’ve been a couple for eight years without the world knowing.
“Tobin and I were not really friends,” Press said of their beginning in Peacock’s Watch with Alex Cooper, per E! News. “We weren’t really running in the same circles, and then as soon as I actually got to know her, there was just like, a magnetism. I was like, ‘That’s what I want’ and I never looked back. I still feel the exact same way.”
But while the world might’ve not known they were together, they were always out and proud with their inner circle. “We were never in the closet, like, hiding it,” Press explained. “Our people always knew what was going on with us. It was the public, the fans that we got our little privacy.”
Press has one Olympic bronze medal while Heath has three medals (including two golds). Together, they’re vying for one more in Paris.
Megan Rapinoe & Sue Bird
After meeting in a group photo shoot at the 2016 Rio Olympics, World Cup winner Megan Rapinoe and the retired WNBA star Sue Bird totally hit it off. “I was like, ‘Okay, don’t be a cliché lesbian, where you love this person when you first meet them,’” Rapinoe told GQ about their first texts. “But it just was immediately like, ‘Oh, this is home.’”
In 2020, after living in a COVID-19-safe bubble during their respective training seasons, Rapinoe popped the question during a trip to Antigua. “There was a look in her eye,” Bird told GQ. “I could just sense it. I knew what was happening.”
The pair have yet to tie the knot.
Celia Quansah & Megan Jones
English Rugby players Celia Quansah and Megan Jones first met at Loughborough University and have been kind of inseparable ever since.
“As I got to know her, she was so kind, empathetic and compassionate,” Jones told Team GB of Quansah. “All the things that I lack! The more we spoke, the more I started to fancy her and love her more. We realized we are soulmates, which is crazy, because not many people can say that I don’t think.”
Getting together, however, came with some tough conversations.
“Obviously it’s a bit of a risk getting with someone that’s in the team,” Quansah explained. “You have to be sure it’s going to work, you’re spending every day together. In the team environment, if you’re having arguments and not getting on, it’s going to affect the dynamic of the team. From the start, we were thinking about more than us.”
“But it wasn’t even really a question,” she said lovingly. “We spoke about it quite a bit but we knew it was going to work.”
“It is just easy,” Quansah said later on. “We complement each other, definitely. Meg is very outgoing. We really respect each other which is the other thing. I really respect Meg with how she is in rugby on the pitch and off it, our families work and she fits in so well with my family. They literally love her and it’s the same the other way.” Talk about a perfect match!
Madison Chock & Evan Bates
Ice dancing duo Madison Chock and Evan Bates’ love story begins with crossed paths. It all started when Chock moved to Michigan when she was just 13 years old to pursue ice dancing. But while Bates was training only 20 minutes away, it still took five years for them to become partners on the rink in 2011.
Over five years later, Bates, who had developed a strong friendship with Chock over the years, decided to bite the bullet and admit his feelings. “I felt like there was always something there — a spark,” he told The New York Times. “But we always kept it professional. After five years of highs and lows together as partners, he confessed his feelings.
“He took me by surprise,” Chock said of the moment. “But then at the same time, I wasn’t surprised. I was like, ‘Oh, actually I have feelings for you, too.'”
Six years later, in June 2022, Bates proposed in Phuket, Thailand. “Six years of dating, 11 years of skating together. And I’d love to spend the rest of my life with you,” Bates said as he got down on one knee. Talk about a movie moment!
On June 20, 2024, they tied the knot in a beautiful ceremony in Oahu, Hawaii.
Gerek Meinhardt & Lee Kiefer
USA Olympic fencers Gerek Meinhardt and Lee Kiefer are a match made in sports heaven.
The pair first officially met fencing together in college at Notre Dame. “When I was a freshman our relationship with very new so early on we knew how to train, be competitive together and be each other’s greatest support,” Kiefer told ND Loyal.
“Tournaments aside we’re just appreciative of all the opportunities we have to travel the world and experience amazing events like this together,” Meinhardt said ahead of the Tokyo Olympics.
In 2019, the pair tied the knot.
Katie Boulter & Alex De Minaur
British Tennis star Katie Boulter and Australian tennis star Alex De Minaur are a tennis match made in heaven. The pair, who have been together since 2020, only went public with their relationship a year later in 2021.
According to De Minaur, a lot of their slow beginnings were figuring out their priorities. “I think what was very important in the early stages is we kind of talked about tennis being our number one priority and we would make all of this work, just finding that balance,” he told ATP.
Since then, they’ve been by each other’s sides ever since. “He’s so supportive of me in the job that I do and completely understands. Not many people do,” Boulter told The Standard, per Hello! “To have that kind of connection where they know what you’re going through, they know the lows and highs, it does feel very comforting. I’m lucky to have him.”
Red Gerard & Hailey Langland
American snowboarders Red Gerard and Hailey Langland started out as friends.
“Red and I met in Mount Hood [Oregon] when we were 12 and on the Burton team. Our team manager gave him my phone number and he started texting me funny messages,” Langland remembered to ESPN. “We became best friends for years.”
During that time, friends and family couldn’t help but see a spark.
“I think everyone but me saw it,” Langland admitted. “I’d say, ‘No, we’re too young. We’re too good of friends.’ But it made sense. Even though we spend every single day together, I don’t think we get tired of one another. He’s my favorite person to be around.”
For Gerard, having his confidante around in competitions has been the biggest blessing. “Most guys don’t get to have their girlfriends with them at contests, competing with them,” he told the outlet. “For me to have that experience where Hailey and I get to travel around together is awesome.”
Tara Davis & Hunter Woodhall
Long jump star Tara Davis and Paralympics athlete Hunter Woodhall first met during a Track meet during their senior year of high school in 2017, per The Knot. A quick slide in the DMs later, their romance began, and so did their long-distance relationship (Davis attended the University of Georgia and the University of Texas while Woodhall attended the University of Arkansas).
In 2021, they got engaged in an intimate proposal in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico. “You make me a better person and I can’t imagine a life without you,” Woodhall wrote in the caption on Instagram. “Thank you for trusting, supporting, and loving me for the last 5 years. here’s to the rest of our lives.”
Over a year later, in October 2022, they tied the knot. “You may not ever get to meet your heroes, but I’m glad I get to marry mine,” Woodhall wrote on Instagram alongside beautiful pictures from the wedding.
“This has been such a dream,” Davis told People of their special day. “Ever since we started dating, Hunter and I have talked about getting married. We truly saw each other for the rest of our lives and this is just so surreal. We’ve hit so many milestones together and this is the biggest one. It’s everything we dreamed of!”
Mikaela Shiffrin & Aleksander Aamodt Kilde
Record-breaking slalom skier Mikaela Shiffrin met her match when she started dating Norwegian alpine skier and 2020 World Cup champion Aleksander Aamodt Kilde.
After going public with their relationship in 2021, Kilde gushed about their connection, both in their sport and beyond.
“We’re having an amazing time together and what I find really cool is that we can share experiences and have conversations about things I can’t really have with anyone else,” he told Olympics.com.
“I like her as a person more than anything else,” he continued. “For me that she’s a skier is just a bonus. I really enjoy spending time with her, and that’s what I keep in mind. Anything else is just a bonus.”
Earlier this year, in April, they announced their engagement. “🤗🫶💍👫🤭,” they wrote in the caption of the joint Instagram post.
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