Did 'Jude Bellingham's WAG' Laura Celia Valk miss his game against Serbia because they AREN'T actually dating? As the model suns herself hundreds of miles from the Euros, sources tell KATIE HIND the 'romance' is a cooked-up publicity stunt

She was notably absent when Jude Bellingham scored the winning goal in England's opening Euro game against Serbia on Sunday.

As the WAGs gathered to support their partners, Dutch beauty Laura Celia Valk was, according to her Instagram account, enjoying a glamourous trip to Paris – some 280 miles away from the match in Gelsenkirchen, Germany.

In fact, yesterday, on the eve of England's clash with Denmark, in Frankfurt, Ms Valk was still in the city of love without Bellingham.

But now, the Mail can reveal the mystery surrounding their 'romance' – because they don't appear to be in a relationship at all. Instead, weeks of rumours were prompted by a publicity stunt orchestrated by an opportunistic executive at Manchester-based clothing company Pretty Little Thing, where Ms Valk is a model.

It was at a glamourous lingerie photoshoot in Madrid that she apparently confided in make-up artists and hairdressers that she and Bellingham, 20, had got close. 

In details believed to have been leaked by the firm to a red top newspaper, Ms Valk, 25, was said to be 'completely smitten' and had spent time at his home in the Spanish city where he plays for Real Madrid.

It was also claimed she had seen him play at Real's Santiago Bernabeu Stadium.

And while neither party has commented on reports of a relationship, two months on from Ms Valk's photoshoot the pair still haven't been seen together and there are claims that Bellingham is still on the exclusive dating app Raya.

A source close to Pretty Little Thing said that when bosses overheard that she knew Jude, an employee at the company contacted the newspaper.

'It was one of those rumours that grew legs and there doesn't seem to be an awful lot to it. But what was evident from the leak is that it got Pretty Little Thing a lot of publicity.

'The story that Laura and Jude were dating went everywhere, and each time the story was repeated, PLT got a mention. It's quite clever, really.

'The world has been waiting for a glimpse of Laura but it doesn't look like that is going to happen, she seems to be doing her own thing in Paris and having a jolly old time, too.'

Ms Valk regularly shares bikini and lingerie snaps with her 370,000 Instagram followers. As well as modelling, she owns a social media consultancy agency, having studied creative business at the Amsterdam University of Applied Science.

England midfielder Jude was previously linked to R&B singer Rmarni after signing up to Raya. He also dated model Asantewa Chitty and American TikTok star Azra Mian.

After moving to Real Madrid last summer in an £85.5 million transfer from German side Borussia Dortmund, Bellingham is arguably the most marketable young sportsperson in the world. 

He already has a partnership with Lucozade and his starring role in the recent Adidas advert highlights his billing as a global name.

It was also announced last week that he had signed a lucrative contract with Kim Kardashian's fashion brand Skims, joining other big names including singer Usher, footballer Neymar Jr and NFL star Patrick Mahomes.