Benjamin Thomas Davies (born 24 April 1993) is a Welsh professional

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby lea ...

who plays as a

left-back In the sport of association football, a defender is an Glossary of association football terms#O, outfield player whose primary role is to stop attacks during the game and prevent the opposition from scoring. Defenders fall into four main categ ...

and

centre-back In the sport of association football, a defender is an outfield player whose primary role is to stop attacks during the game and prevent the opposition from scoring. Defenders fall into four main categories: centre-backs, full-backs, sweepers ...

for club

Tottenham Hotspur Tottenham Hotspur Football Club, commonly referred to as simply Tottenham (, , , ) or Spurs, is a professional Association football, football club based in Tottenham, North London, England. The club itself has stated that it should always ...

and the Wales national team. Davies is an academy graduate of

Swansea City Swansea City Association Football Club ( ; ) is a Welsh professional football club based in Swansea, Wales. It competes in the EFL Championship, the second tier of the English football league system. Swansea have played their home matches at ...

, a Welsh club based in

Swansea Swansea ( ; ) is a coastal City status in the United Kingdom, city and the List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, second-largest city of Wales. It forms a Principal areas of Wales, principal area, officially known as the City and County of ...

who play in the

English football league system The English football league system, also known as the football pyramid, is a series of interconnected leagues for men's association football clubs in England, with five teams from Wales, one from Guernsey, one from Jersey and one from the ...

, also joining Danish club

Viborg FF Viborg Fodsports Forening (), also known as Viborg FF or VFF for short, is a Danish professional association football, football club based in the Central Denmark Region, Central Jutland city of Viborg, Denmark, Viborg. They compete in the Danish ...

's academy while his family lived in Denmark. He made his professional debut for Swansea City in the second

Premier League The Premier League is a professional association football league in England and the highest level of the English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Football Lea ...

game of the

2012–13 1 (one, unit, unity) is a number, numeral, and glyph. It is the first and smallest positive integer of the infinite sequence of natural numbers. This fundamental property has led to its unique uses in other fields, ranging from science to sp ...

season against

West Ham United West Ham United Football Club is a professional Association football, football club based in Stratford, London, Stratford, East London, England. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football league system, English f ...

, scoring his first professional goal in a 3–1 Premier League win against

Stoke City Stoke City Football Club is a professional association football club based in Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, England. The team competes in the , the second level of the English football league system. Founded as Stoke Ramblers in 1863, the cl ...

in January 2013. In the 2013–14 season, Davies was once again a regular for Swansea City. In July 2014, Davies was signed by Tottenham Hotspur for an undisclosed fee, making his debut for Tottenham in a

Europa League The UEFA Europa League (UEL), usually known simply as the Europa League, is an annual association football, football club competition organised since 1971 by the UEFA, Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) for eligible European footb ...

game against Cypriot side

AEL Limassol Athlitiki Enosi Lemesou () is a Cyprus, Cypriot sports club based in the city of Limassol, most famous for its football team. AEL Limassol also maintains a AEL Limassol B.C., men's and AEL Limassol B.C. (women), women's basketball teams, a wom ...

. During

Mauricio Pochettino Mauricio Roberto Pochettino Trossero (born 2 March 1972), also known mononymously by his nickname Poch, is an Argentine professional football manager and former player who is the head coach of the United States men's national team. Pochettin ...

's tenure, Davies battled Danny Rose for the starting left-back spot, but Davies was redeployed as a left-sided centre-back in a defensive back three by

Antonio Conte Antonio Conte (; born 31 July 1969) is an Italian professional Association football, football manager and former player who is currently the head coach of Serie A club Napoli. He is widely regarded as one of the best football managers in the wo ...

. Davies made three appearances for the Welsh national U-19 football team in his youth. His appearances all came as part of qualification for the 2012 UEFA European Under-19 Championship. Davies made his debut senior Welsh national team against Scotland at the

2014 FIFA World Cup qualification The 2014 FIFA World Cup qualification was a series of tournaments organised by the six FIFA#Structure, FIFA confederations. The 2014 FIFA World Cup featured 32 teams, with one place reserved for the host nation, Brazil national football team, Bra ...

in 2012. He has since made over 90 senior appearances for Wales, and represented the side at

UEFA Euro 2016 The 2016 UEFA European Football Championship, commonly referred to as UEFA Euro 2016 (stylised as UEFA EURO 2016) or simply Euro 2016, was the 15th UEFA European Championship, the quadrennial international men's association football, football ch ...

, reaching the semi-finals, and

UEFA Euro 2020 The 2020 UEFA European Football Championship, commonly referred to as UEFA Euro 2020 or simply Euro 2020, was the 16th UEFA European Championship, the Anniversary#Latin-derived numerical names, quadrennial international men's association footb ...

. Davies also helped Wales qualify for the

FIFA World Cup The FIFA World Cup, often called the World Cup, is an international association football competition among the senior List of men's national association football teams, men's national teams of the members of the FIFA, Fédération Internatio ...

2022 The year began with another wave in the COVID-19 pandemic, with SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant, Omicron spreading rapidly and becoming the dominant variant of the SARS-CoV-2 virus worldwide. Tracking a decrease in cases and deaths, 2022 saw ...

, their first tournament appearance since 1958.

Early life

Davies was born in

Neath Neath (; ) is a market town and Community (Wales), community situated in the Neath Port Talbot, Neath Port Talbot County Borough, Wales. The town had a population of 50,658 in 2011. The community of the parish of Neath had a population of 19,2 ...

, West Glamorgan. After spending time in the youth academy at

, he and his family moved to Viborg, Denmark, after his father accepted a job offer. They spent three years living in Denmark, where he played for

's youth team before returning to Swansea. Davies attended

Ysgol Gyfun Ystalyfera Ysgol Gymraeg Ystalyfera Bro Dur is a Welsh-medium comprehensive school in Neath Port Talbot, Wales. The school provides education to three to eighteen-year-old pupils in Neath Port Talbot and south Powys from three campuses in Ystalyfera an ...

and he is a fluent

Welsh language Welsh ( or ) is a Celtic languages, Celtic language of the Brittonic languages, Brittonic subgroup that is native to the Welsh people. Welsh is spoken natively in Wales by about 18% of the population, by some in England, and in (the Welsh c ...

speaker.

Club career

Swansea City

After spending time with the youth ranks, Davies signed a two-year contract with

, making his first-team debut against

for the

on 25 August 2012, coming on as an 84th minute substitute for Neil Taylor in a 3–0 home win. Davies became a regular starter for Swansea in the 2012–13 season, following a long-term injury to Taylor. On 23 November 2012, Davies signed a new three-and-a-half-year contract with Swansea. On 19 January 2013, Davies scored his first goal for Swansea against

in a 3–1 victory. In doing so, at 19 years and 270 days, he became Swansea's youngest scorer in the Premier League. On 24 February 2013, Davies started at left-back in the

2013 Football League Cup final The 2013 Football League Cup Final was a association football, football match between Bradford City A.F.C., Bradford City and Swansea City A.F.C., Swansea City, which took place on 24 February 2013 at Wembley Stadium in London. It was the final m ...

Wembley Stadium Wembley Stadium, currently branded as Wembley Stadium connected by EE Limited, EE for sponsorship reasons, is an association football stadium in Wembley, London. It opened in 2007 on the site of the Wembley Stadium (1923), original Wembley Sta ...

, as the Swans beat

Bradford City Bradford City Association Football Club is an English professional football club in Bradford, West Yorkshire. The club competes in , the third tier of English football, and is managed by Graham Alexander. The club was founded in 1903 and ...

5–0 to win the club's first major trophy. In September 2013, he scored his second and third Premier League goals for Swansea, against

West Bromwich Albion West Bromwich Albion Football Club (), commonly known as West Brom or The Albion, is a professional association football club based in West Bromwich, West Midlands, England. They compete in the EFL Championship, the second level of the Englis ...

and

Arsenal An arsenal is a place where arms and ammunition are made, maintained and repaired, stored, or issued, in any combination, whether privately or publicly owned. Arsenal and armoury (British English) or armory (American English) are mostly ...

respectively. On 24 December 2013, Davies signed a one-year contract extension with the Swans.

Tottenham Hotspur

On 23 July 2014, Davies joined

on a five-year contract for an undisclosed fee. He joined on the same day as his Swansea teammate

Michel Vorm Michel Armand Vorm (born 20 October 1983) is a Dutch former professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper. Following his playing career, he was also a goalkeeping coach at Tottenham Hotspur. Vorm began his professional career at FC Utrecht ...

, with

Gylfi Sigurðsson Gylfi Þór Sigurðsson (; transliterated as Gylfi Thor Sigurdsson; born 8 September 1989) is an Icelandic professional Association football, footballer who plays as an attacking midfielder for Besta deild karla club Knattspyrnufélagið Víkin ...

being exchanged as part of the deal. Davies made his Premier League debut for Tottenham Hotspur as a late substitute in a 0–3 defeat to

Liverpool Liverpool is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. It is situated on the eastern side of the River Mersey, Mersey Estuary, near the Irish Sea, north-west of London. With a population ...

. He made his first start for the club in the league in a 2–1 away win at

Hull City Hull City Association Football Club is a professional association football club based in Kingston upon Hull, East Riding of Yorkshire, England. They compete in the , the second level of the English football league system. They play their home ...

on 23 November 2014. He was an unused substitute for the 2015 League Cup Final at

on 1 March 2015, in which Tottenham were beaten 2–0 by Chelsea. Davies scored his first goal for the club on 8 January 2017, a header in an

FA Cup The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual Single-elimination tournament, knockout association football, football competition in domestic Football in England, English football. First played during ...

tie against

Aston Villa Aston Villa Football Club (commonly referred to as simply Villa) is a professional football club based in Aston, Birmingham, England. The club, founded in 1874, compete in the Premier League, the top tier of English football. The team have p ...

. He signed a new four-year contract at Tottenham on 9 March 2017, extending his deal to 2021. Davies scored his second Tottenham goal – and his first for them in the Premier League – against Hull City on the final day of the 2016–17 season; a first-time strike from outside the box into the top left corner added a sixth goal in an eventual 7–1 win for Tottenham. Davies started for Tottenham in the opening match of the 2017–18 season, and scored a goal in a 2–0 win away to

Newcastle United Newcastle United Football Club is a professional association football club based in Newcastle upon Tyne, Tyne and Wear, England. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football league system, English football. Since th ...

. Davies signed a new 5-year contract with Tottenham in July 2019. Davies scored his first goal of the 2020–21 season, his first in over three years, in the

EFL Cup The English Football League Cup, often referred to as the League Cup and currently known as the Carabao Cup for sponsorship reasons, is an annual Single-elimination tournament, knockout competition in men's domestic football in England. Orga ...

tie against

, helping the team win 3–1 to reach the semi-finals. At the start of the 2021–22 season, Davies started only one Premier League game during

Nuno Espírito Santo Nuno Herlander Simões Espírito Santo (born 25 January 1974), known as Nuno Espírito Santo or simply Nuno, is a Portuguese-São Toméan Manager (association football), football manager and former Football player, player who played as a Goalkee ...

's brief tenure as head coach. He returned to being a regular starter under the management of

, who was hired as head coach in November 2021, playing as a left-sided centre-back in a back three. Davies scored his first goal of the 2022–23 season in a league match against

Bournemouth Bournemouth ( ) is a coastal resort town in the Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole unitary authority area, in the ceremonial county of Dorset, England. At the 2021 census, the built-up area had a population of 196,455, making it the largest ...

on 29 October, an equaliser in an eventual 3–2 comeback victory. He scored his first goal of the 2023–24 season with a header from Pedro Porro's corner kick in a 4–2 defeat away to Brighton and Hove Albion on 28 December 2023. On 8 June 2025, the club announced it had triggered a one-year extension to the player's contract.

International career

In September 2012, Davies was selected for the

Wales Wales ( ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by the Irish Sea to the north and west, England to the England–Wales border, east, the Bristol Channel to the south, and the Celtic ...

squad for

matches in September 2012. He replaced club teammate Neil Taylor, who had suffered a broken ankle in a Premier League match against

Sunderland Sunderland () is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England. It is a port at the mouth of the River Wear on the North Sea, approximately south-east of Newcastle upon Tyne. It is the most p ...

. Davies made his full international debut in the 2–1 win against

Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

on 12 October 2012. Davies was a member of the Wales side who qualified for

, Wales' first tournament in 58 years. In Wales' opening match, Davies provided a crucial goal-line block after

Marek Hamšík Marek Hamšík (; born 27 July 1987) is a Slovak football coach and former player who played as a midfielder. He is currently the team manager and assistant coach for the Slovakia national team. After beginning his club career with Slovan B ...

's shot passed goalkeeper Danny Ward, with Wales going on to win 2-1. Davies went on to start every match for Wales as they made a surprise run to the tournament semi-finals, losing to eventual champions

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic, is a country on the Iberian Peninsula in Southwestern Europe. Featuring Cabo da Roca, the westernmost point in continental Europe, Portugal borders Spain to its north and east, with which it share ...

. In May 2021 he was selected for the Wales squad for the delayed

tournament. In November 2022 he was named in the Wales squad for the

2022 FIFA World Cup The 2022 FIFA World Cup was the 22nd FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial world championship for national football teams organized by FIFA. It took place in Qatar from 20 November to 18 December 2022, after the country was awarded the hosting ri ...

Qatar Qatar, officially the State of Qatar, is a country in West Asia. It occupies the Geography of Qatar, Qatar Peninsula on the northeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula in the Middle East; it shares Qatar–Saudi Arabia border, its sole land b ...

. Following

Gareth Bale Gareth Frank Bale (born 16 July 1989) is a Welsh former professional Association football, footballer who played as a right winger, most notably for Tottenham Hotspur F.C., Tottenham Hotspur, Real Madrid CF, Real Madrid, and the Wales national ...

's retirement in 2022 and Aaron Ramsey's promotion to captain, Davies was named vice captain of the national team, having first worn the armband in a friendly against England in 2020.

Outside football

In the summer of 2021, Davies was awarded a 2:1 degree in economics and business from the

Open University The Open University (OU) is a Public university, public research university and the largest university in the United Kingdom by List of universities in the United Kingdom by enrolment, number of students. The majority of the OU's undergraduate ...

, after balancing his studies with his job as a professional footballer over a period of five years.

Career statistics

Club

International

:''As of match played 22 March 2025. Wales' score listed first, score column indicates score after each Davies goal.''

Honours

Swansea City *

Football League Cup The English Football League Cup, often referred to as the League Cup and currently known as the Carabao Cup for sponsorship reasons, is an annual Single-elimination tournament, knockout competition in men's domestic football in England. Orga ...

Tottenham Hotspur *

UEFA Europa League The UEFA Europa League (UEL), usually known simply as the Europa League, is an annual association football, football club competition organised since 1971 by the UEFA, Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) for eligible European footb ...

: 2024–25 *Football League/EFL Cup runner-up: 2014–15,

2020–21 The dash is a punctuation mark consisting of a long horizontal line. It is similar in appearance to the hyphen but is longer and sometimes higher from the baseline. The most common versions are the endash , generally longer than the hyphen ...

UEFA Champions League The UEFA Champions League (UCL) is an annual club association football competition organised by the UEFA, Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) that is contested by List of top-division football clubs in UEFA countries, top-divisio ...

runner-up: 2018–19

References

External links

Profile
at the Tottenham Hotspur F.C. website * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Davies, Ben 1993 births Living people Footballers from Neath Welsh men's footballers 21st-century Welsh sportsmen Wales men's youth international footballers Wales men's international footballers Men's association football fullbacks Men's association football central defenders Swansea City A.F.C. players Tottenham Hotspur F.C. players Premier League players UEFA Euro 2016 players UEFA Euro 2020 players 2022 FIFA World Cup players UEFA Europa League–winning players People educated at Ysgol Gyfun Ystalyfera