{"id":534406,"date":"2026-07-10T08:56:11","date_gmt":"2026-07-10T08:56:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/534406\/"},"modified":"2026-07-10T08:56:11","modified_gmt":"2026-07-10T08:56:11","slug":"give-me-another-medal-meet-the-hair-stylist-who-has-taken-over-the-world-cup-world-cup-2026","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/534406\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018Give me another medal!\u2019: meet the hair stylist who has taken over the World Cup | World Cup 2026"},"content":{"rendered":"

Jay\u00e8ma has had a World Cup<\/a> like no other. Who else but the London hair stylist has worked with footballers from England, Brazil, the United States and Canada, and hung out with Lamine Yamal and his family, while having no idea who Lionel Messi is until recently?<\/p>\n

Who else but Jay\u00e8ma has been to her first game of men\u2019s football and left before the end of a tumultuous match between Mexico and England<\/a> at the Azteca Stadium because the atmosphere was too \u201crowdy\u201d? Who else has made so many footballers feel especially good about their hair and themselves, but the hardest-working stylist and male groomer in elite sport?<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, I\u2019m tired,\u201d Jay\u00e8ma says on the morning after flying back to Los Angeles from Mexico City. \u201cAll those early mornings, late nights and missed flights.\u201d She could be leaving soon for Kansas City or Miami should Marcus Rashford or Noni Madueke \u201cgive me a call to retouch their hair\u201d before England play Norway in their World Cup quarter-final on Saturday. \u201cI\u2019m always tired but my work ethic is next to none. I\u2019m always available.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jay\u00e8ma smiles in the California sunshine when I ask whether she enjoyed her fleeting break from work after accepting a ticket to last Sunday\u2019s epic encounter. \u201cIt was good but I didn\u2019t stay to the end. It was too much. There was someone in my ear, like literally shouting in my ear, and they were throwing drinks everywhere. The Mexicans were rowdy. I heard the [England] boys had a nasty welcome when they arrived. I was like: \u2018God, I need you to let them win. Make them know they\u2019re not alone.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

After a draining match, Jay\u00e8ma was bemused. \u201cI still don\u2019t understand football, like how it ends up with people crying,\u201d she says in her London accent as her eyes widen at the extremity of emotion. \u201cBut I won\u2019t lie to you. Even though I\u2019m not big into it, I did feel proud when England won. I saw real joy.\u201d<\/p>\n

Did she jump up when Jude Bellingham scored twice<\/a> \u2013 particularly as she had been joking with him earlier in the week? \u201cNo, but I was happy we won. It was my first ever game of football.\u201d Jay\u00e8ma pauses. \u201cActually I\u2019ve been to a female soccer game as I work with some great women footballers.\u201d<\/p>\n

She was shocked by footage of Jordan Henderson breaking a wrist<\/a> during the celebrations. Jay\u00e8ma, who is warm and friendly, was stunned to discover Henderson was a member of the England squad.<\/p>\n

England\u2019s Marcus Rashford gets his hair braided by stylist Jay\u00e8ma. Photograph: Jayema<\/p>\n

\u201cI didn\u2019t know who he was and he helped me carry my bags when I got to the England house. He was such a gentleman and I had no idea he was a player. I kept going up to him when I needed help with the wifi. I was the only woman there but everyone was so gentlemanly.<\/p>\n

\u201cI didn\u2019t even know Jude was a player. But we worked out my birthday was the same as Jude\u2019s and [Eberechi] Eze\u2019s. All three of us have their birthday the same day [29 June]. So it was mind-blowing to look them up and see their millions of followers.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jay\u00e8ma, whose real name is May Jika, comes from Plaistow in east London. Her brand name combines the opening two letters from her brother\u2019s, her mother\u2019s and her first name and she has been on a successful business path since she was a teenager. \u201cI was one of the first people to have an Afro-Caribbean salon in Vicarage Field [shopping centre] in Barking. I was only 17 and had the vision at 15. But I\u2019m always focused. Even when my peers were having fun at university I was working on a plan. Things are happening now and it doesn\u2019t surprise me because of the work I\u2019ve put in. I\u2019ve paid my dues.\u201d<\/p>\n

Her work was spotted by leading female basketballers in the WNBA, including the great A\u2019ja Wilson who posted about Jay\u00e8ma on social media and invited her to the Paris Olympics two years ago. Jay\u00e8ma was introduced to LeBron James, Steph Curry and Kevin Durant. \u201cEveryone was shocked I didn\u2019t know who they were. They enjoyed me treating them like normal. I did their hair, ate with them, laughed with them. They were very down-to-earth and relatable \u2013 same as the Super Bowl guys I\u2019ve worked with.\u201d<\/p>\n

Although based in London, Jay\u00e8ma flies back and forth to America. Her work has been increasingly noticed by footballers, such as Raphinha<\/a>, whose hair she braided again during Brazil\u2019s World Cup. \u201cI feel we launched a look for him. He\u2019s such a lovely guy.\u201d<\/p>\n

Madueke and Rashford asked her to visit the England camp<\/a> before their opening match against Croatia. \u201cNoni is such a character. He\u2019s so funny. I love both of them. Noni knows what he wants but Rashford told me he was new to braiding so he let me choose what I felt suited him. I looked at his face shape and aura and gave him something to boost his confidence.<\/p>\n

\u201cI remember the first day I finished working with them. They were about to go for their match and I was on a flight to LA. I prayed for them and went to sleep. When I woke up, and it was time to get off the flight, my phone was buzzing. Rashford had scored and, wow, I was happy for them. He told me he loved his hair and lots of attention was paid to his look<\/a> after the goal. But I didn\u2019t know how big the World Cup was then. I know we love football in the UK but I didn\u2019t know to this extent \u2013 like all the love I\u2019m getting, with people saying: \u2018Thank you for looking after our boys.\u2019 I\u2019m like: \u2018Wow! Give me another medal!\u2019<\/p>\n

Raphinha\u2019s dazzling braids are the work of Jay\u00e8ma. Photograph: Victor Monteiro\/PX Imagens\/ZUMA Press Wire\/Shutterstock<\/p>\n

\u201cI told Rashford I\u2019m the least sports person in the world but I\u2019ve ended up in sports. Over the last year and a half I\u2019ve been the only stylist who has covered most of the major sporting platforms. I feel like a lot of [sportspeople] are not really sure what they want and they\u2019re also scared because their priority is to perform well. But they\u2019ve seen my work and they know they can trust me to create a style that\u2019s only going to enhance their game.\u201d<\/p>\n

Messi proved his greatness again<\/a> at this tournament but Jay\u00e8ma laughs when I say he doesn\u2019t have the coolest haircut in football. \u201cDo you know what? The England team told me about Messi. I don\u2019t think I\u2019d seen his face until a few weeks ago. I told one of the female soccer players I work with that if I saw Messi I wouldn\u2019t recognise him. She was like \u2018What!? He\u2019s the only person I would ask for a picture.\u2019 But I\u2019d heard of [Cristiano] Ronaldo.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Jay\u00e8ma moves within the elite echelons of football without recognising many big stars \u2013 while forging a natural friendship with Lamine Yamal\u2019s family.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was asked to style his mum\u2019s hair and afterwards everyone was like: \u2018Oh my God! You\u2019re big time now. How do you know Lamine Yamal?\u2019 I was like: \u2018You mean her little son?\u2019 It was then I realised he\u2019s one of the biggest footballers in the world. I\u2019d been in their house sitting around with the grandma, the whole family, eating chicken and fried rice and they were making me things. I didn\u2019t know what it meant until I posted a picture and my friends went crazy.\u201d<\/p>\n

Has she worked on his hair? \u201cNo, he has his natural hair. I just do it for his mum and in the World Cup I saw them all together. Me and his mum are cool and Lamine\u2019s [three-year-old] brother Keyne<\/a> [who has become a viral sensation] is so smart. He loves African dancing and I say to his mum: \u2018How does he know all the songs at his age?\u2019 She just laughs.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey\u2019re so humble. His mum told me the story of their struggle and how she chose his name \u2013 because Lamine and Yamal were the two men who helped them when he was so small. I got goosebumps when they were telling the story. They\u2019re lovely people.\u201d<\/p>\n

What about Erling Haaland<\/a>? \u201cI heard of him for the first time yesterday,\u201d Jay\u00e8ma exclaims. \u201cHe\u2019s got that long blond hair and he\u2019s big.\u201d<\/p>\n

Would it be an intriguing challenge to work with Haaland\u2019s flowing locks? \u201cIt\u2019s a possibility because I went through his profile and he\u2019s done braiding before.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jay\u00e8ma had opened a salon in Barking by the time she was 17. Photograph: Jessica Pons\/The Guardian<\/p>\n

There is no chance of that happening this week because, when the Ghana squad tried to book Jay\u00e8ma before playing England, she felt duty-bound to refuse. \u201cBut [Haaland] could reach out after the World Cup because he plays in the UK, right? It could happen.\u201d<\/p>\n

As we look ahead to the possibility that England could make the World Cup final I ask Jay\u00e8ma whether she knows what happened to Rashford, Bukayo Saka and Jadon Sancho after the final of the Euros against Italy at Wembley in 2021? She shakes her head and then, hearing about the racist abuse<\/a> the young footballers suffered after each missed a penalty in the shootout, Jay\u00e8ma looks horrified.<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t understand it. These [racist] people want them to play for England but how do they expect them to perform when they\u2019re being abused?\u201cI began to see [racism] when I started posting about the players. I was very surprised by some of the comments. Why are people so harsh on these young men who want to do well so badly? People don\u2019t understand the sacrifices they make. They have such a work ethic and are so positive.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jay\u00e8ma smiles when I say the England team, with their mix of ethnicities and hairstyles, are an uplifting antidote to racism and the politics of division. \u201cExactly. Football is meant to bring us together and give unity. With my work I just want to showcase the fact that these footballers are amazing people.\u201d<\/p>\n