Lioness Beth Mead has revealed her first crush was on former England WAG Cheryl.
The football ace, 27, said she struggled to understand her feelings for the pop star as a teen.
But she admits the Girls Aloud singer and X Factor judge was very “special” to her.
In her biography, Lioness: My Journey To Glory, Beth writes: “I probably should have realised that I was gay a little bit sooner than I did. I was a big Girls Aloud fan, but Cheryl was special to me.
“Back then, I thought she was just someone I looked up to, someone to be interested in outside of football. I liked her music, her clothes, her whole vibe.
“Was it a crush? Was it my sexual awakening? Was it just a phase? It’s hard to know.”
Cheryl Tweedy, as she was then known, found fame in 2002 after winning a place in Girls Aloud through ITV show Popstars: The Rivals.
By 2006 she was engaged to England ace Ashley Cole and attended that year’s World Cup alongside Coleen Rooney and Victoria Beckham.
Cheryl and Ashley wed after the tournament but divorced in 2010.
Beth says in her memoir, published by Seven Dials, that because lots of teenage girls were big Cheryl fans, it may have “muddied” her true feelings.
She writes: “Looking back now, I can see that I might have liked her in that way, but I didn’t think too deeply about it at the time.”
Golden Boot winner Beth, who fired England to success in this summer’s Euros, said she dated “a lot” of boys in her teens. But after realising she was gay, her first same-sex relationship was with former Sunderland teammate Rachael Laws.
Beth said she initially worried about what her family and friends back home in North Yorkshire would think.
But she did not say the words “I’m gay” for a long time because she was happy with who she was and felt no need.
The forward is now in a relationship with fellow Arsenal ace Vivianne Miedema, 26.
Beth said female footballers who find love with their teammates are very good at keeping things professional.
But she adds: “I’ve noticed I tend to get particularly emotional and angry in a game with the person I’m with.
“I’ve always said you take things out on the person you care about most. Luckily for Viv, that’s her.”
