Mary Fowler has revealed she actually started her romance with Nathan Cleary much earlier than people realise, and the pair went on a date on the morning of a Matildas games at the 2023 World Cup. The general public only cottoned onto the superstar couple’s relationship in September of 2023 – weeks after the World Cup had ended.
But speaking in a wide-ranging interview for ‘Stellar’ magazine on Sunday, Fowler revealed they were actually seeing each other as early as July of that year – during the World Cup. The Matildas star even went on a date with Cleary on the morning of Australia’s first game of the tournament against Ireland.
Mary Fowler and Nathan Cleary were actually seeing each other during the World Cup in 2023. Image: News Corp/Getty
“I have so many positive feelings about the tournament itself,” she said. “But then, outside of it, it was such an exciting time as well. We met up quite a few times during (the World Cup), and I don’t think we really thought about it ever getting out. I think we’re both really grateful that it came out after.”
As Fowler alluded to, it would have become a complete sideshow if the media and general public knew about the relationship during the tournament. It wasn’t until two months later that whispers started to emerge that two of Australia’s sporting superstars were seeing each other romantically, and even then it wasn’t confirmed until late in 2023.
The Mary Fowler and Nathan Cleary romance only became public knowledge after the World Cup. Image: Mary Fowler/Stellar
Mary Fowler’s admission about very public relationship
Fowler admits she initially struggled with the intense spotlight it created – coupled by the Matildas exploding in popularity during their run to the World Cup semi-finals. “Nathan has a bit more experience with being in the media,” she said. “I had never really had that.
“The growth I had from the World Cup was already one thing I was trying to get used to. Then adding all the talk about our relationship … it was a lot. The introvert in me was screaming. But it was really nice to be able to speak about that with him, and accept that that’s just how it is.”
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Fowler became a household name in Australia that year, and her social media following grew from 40,000 followers on Instagram to over 300,000. She was the second-most Googled person in Australia in 2023 (only behind Matildas captain Sam Kerr), and she now has 450,000 followers.
The 22-year-old admitted she’s a bit more comfortable in the spotlight now, and happy to show off her relationship in public. Fowler and Cleary feature on each other’s Instagram pages quite a bit, and she was sitting with his family in the crowd during the second Ashes Test against England.
The happy couple are enjoying some downtime in Europe before he heads back to Australia for pre-season with the Panthers. Fowler is rehabbing her knee after tearing her ACL, and is expected to be ready for the Asian Cup in Australia in March.