Former England footballer Jermain Defoe has split from his wife just months after their £200,000 wedding, according to reports.
The former Spurs and West Ham star, who was married just over six months ago, spent Christmas on the Caribbean island of St Lucia while his wife Donna stayed home in Glasgow.
Defoe, 40, has recently been photographed without his wedding ring, while Donna has gone back to using her maiden name of Tierney online.
The 40-year-old has also unfollowed her husband on social media and neither has posted about the other for more than eight weeks.
Both have deleted photos on Instagram of the OK! Cover of the magazine that starred in their wedding last June.
MailOnline takes a look back at their whirlwind romance, from when they met in January 2021 to their split just two years later.
Separation: Former England footballer Jermain Defoe has split from his wife just months after their £200,000 wedding, according to reports
FIRST MEETINGS
Jermain first met the Scottish beautician by liking her photos on social media.
They first met in person in January 2021 at a charity, where she asked him for a signed shirt.
Jermain said: “We met years ago when he was playing for Sunderland and I messaged him on Instagram. I DMed him. We had a general chat but hadn’t spoken in a long time.
“When I started playing for Rangers in 2019, I remembered that Donna was from Glasgow and touched base with her again – I kept looking at her sexy photos on Instagram.
Couple: Jermain first met the Scottish beautician by liking her photos on social media
“But we didn’t meet until January 2021 when Donna asked if I could give her an autographed soccer jersey for a charity.”
Just seven months later, he got down on one knee and proposed to Donna in a £2,500-a-night Glasgow hotel that was festooned with glowing “Marry Me” lettering and rose petals.
A source told the Daily entry at the time: ‘Donna was so excited by the effort that Jermain put in. He was so romantic.
‘Signing for Rangers has turned out to be the best decision he’s ever made. He not only won the league title but he found the woman of his dreams. They are both more than happy.
Proposal: In August, the then-Rangers forward got down on one knee and proposed to the Scottish beautician, at the £2,500-a-night Blythswood Square Hotel that was festooned with illuminated “Marry Me” lettering and rose petals.
WEDDING
The couple then tied the knot in a £200,000 ceremony at Cliveden House in June this year.
The 250 guests included Tottenham first team assistant coach Ledley King, former West Ham player turned TalkSport pundit Carlton Cole and former Manchester City winger Shaun Wright-Phillips.
The bride looked amazing in a plunging white gown with lace sleeves, topped with a long veil.
She carried a bouquet of pink roses while her new husband was dapper in a cream jacket, waistcoat and bowtie.
Celebrations: The couple then tied the knot in a £200,000 ceremony at Cliveden House in June this year (Donna at her hen party)
The 45-minute ceremony took place in a beautiful flower garden on the famous Cliveden estate, while a stunning light show took place in the sky above the grounds at the reception.
An informant said Sun: ‘Donna looked beautiful. And Jermain looked like the cat that got the cream. It was a happy day filled with celebration and joy.’
jermain said OK! magazine: ‘This is my future, this is forever, this is the person I want to spend the rest of my life with.’
On June 21, she posted online: ‘Dedicating my entire life to Donna Defoe was one of the easiest things I’ve ever done, and I can’t wait to have a life of pure love and happiness.
Beloved: Donna said OK! magazine about how friends made it obvious that Jermain appreciated her through her ‘special’ wedding speech and the way he treated her 12-year-old daughter Olivia (pictured)
“Our wedding was like a movie and I thank God for blessing us both with such a special day with family and friends who mean the world to us.”
Donna said OK! magazine about how her friends made it obvious that Jermain appreciated her through his ‘special’ wedding speech and the way he treated her 12-year-old daughter Olivia.
Donna said: “Everyone keeps talking about how special Jermain’s speech was.
“They said it showed how much he appreciates me. What she got me was when she talked about my daughter, who means a lot to me.
‘That made me feel very special. My daughter loves Jermain very much, he is a good stepfather. He is amazing.
I couldn’t have asked or wanted anything better than the way he treats Olivia.
MARRIAGE PROBLEMS
Radio silence: Jermain has only posted photos of himself without his wedding ring and no mention of his wife
said a source Sun: ‘The marriage seems to be in trouble. You’d think they’d want to spend their first Christmas together as husband and wife, but they haven’t, so things aren’t looking good.
For almost two months there has been a remarkable silence.
Jermain has only posted photos of himself without his wedding ring and no mention of his wife.
Donna has only posted photos of herself and her family and wished her 8,000 followers ‘all the love and happiness in the world’, under a photo of her 12-year-old daughter unwrapping Christmas presents.
Donna suggested in an Instagram Story that she was glad to see the back of 2022 and was “looking forward” to the New Year.
ALLEGATIONS OF CHEATING
The Sun on Sunday revealed that Jermain had begged a nurse for sex just a month after they were married.
Last year, Jermain was said to have contacted a woman via Instagram and invited her to join him in his Range Rover just weeks after their June nuptials, though the sportsman denied any wrongdoing at the time.
On July 14, Jermain had allegedly already started messaging another woman and then tried to set up a meeting.
The Sun said the woman, who was not named, met the footballer years ago in a bar, but they had not spoken for a long time.
She said: ‘He then started messaging me on Instagram in July. He was desperate to meet me and we flirted a lot.
“Then, when I realized that he was married, I didn’t want to go any further.”
The woman said she didn’t think it would have been fair to his wife and questioned why he would be looking for another woman “so soon” after their wedding.
In July, he began messaging the woman, eventually asking her to meet up for some fun in his Range Rover, calling her “baby” in voice memos.
She added: “Our messages were kind of funny at the time, but there was no point in continuing.”
Jermain has previously found himself at the center of cheating rumors, including about his ex Alexandra Burke.
In 2017, he was charged with causing the breakdown of the marriage of radio host Ben Weston, months after he bought his wife, the saleswoman Sally, a jacuzzi.
Allegations: The Sun on Sunday revealed that Jermain had begged a nurse for sex just a month after they were married