Married to the Game review: turns out footballers’ wives actually lead quite boring lives

This new Prime Video documentary attempts to overturn the WAG stereotype, but fails to provide any of the depth needed to do so
Maddy Mussen21 February 2024

Prime Video has long been established in the behind-the-scenes Premier League football docuseries world, having created three successful seasons of All or Nothing, a behind-the-scenes look into Manchester City, Tottenham and Arsenal’s changing rooms. But with new series Married to the Game, Amazon is turning its attention away from the pitch and onto the WAGs.

Or not WAGs, sorry, they hate that term. It implies that all they are is a footballer’s wife. This series is a six episode long, 40 minutes per episode attempt to correct that – badly. It follows five partners of current or ex-Premier League players, as they navigate the trials and tribulations of a life entirely dictated by their other half’s career. 

There’s Cat Harding, the long-term partner of Arsenal Midfielder Jorginho, Sara Gündoğan, wife of former Man City captain İlkay Gündoğan, Taylor Ward, wife of former Man City winger Riyad Mahrez, Samantha Tarkowski, wife of Everton captain James Tarkowski, and Ash Turner, wife of Nottingham Forest goalkeeper Matt Turner.

Taylor Ward, who is married to former Manchester City player Riyad Mahrez, stars in Married to the Game
Amazon Prime

In episode one, the cameras watch on as these women show off their various pursuits – jewellery lines, modelling careers, singing aspirations. Anyone who has watched a particularly boring episode of The Kardashians, where there is minimal family gossip or drama and maximum PR campaigning, will be familiar with this kind of content. Khloe’s working on Good American, Kim’s at a Skims photoshoot and I’m falling asleep. 

I don’t want to be too harsh on the women of Married to the Game, because if there’s one takeaway from this series is that they actually do have pretty difficult lives. As well as the ladies’ various side hustles, the other main focus of episode one is the brutality of the transfer window. We’re only a few minutes into the series when two of the five footballers – Mahrez and Gündoğan – decide to leave the wildly successful English club, Man City, for FC Barcelona and Al-Ahli Saudi FC respectively, shocking their wives. Ward, a Cheshire native, is particularly unsettled by this news as she’s near-immediately uprooted from her family and local area with very little say in the matter.

Ash Turner and Nottingham Forest goalkeeper Matt Turner (as seen on FaceTime) appear in Married to the Game
Amazon Prime

In episode two, you witness the heartbreak of a very pregnant Ash Turner, as she makes plans to go into induced labour while her husband will still be away playing football. The footballers don’t seem to care that much, or have just gotten used to it – after all, it’s all in the service of their dream.

Phrases like “It’s all part of the game” and “But that’s life” get thrown around a lot, and you do feel a little for these women who spend so much time on their own, and are in such little control of their own lives. Yes, they have untold riches and no one forced them to marry a footballer, but they’re still human. 

Plus, some of them are genuinely pretty likeable. Cat Harding and Taylor Ward provide some classic London and Northern girl charm, but spare a thought for Sam Tarkowski, wife of Everton captain James Tarkowski, who is the most relatable (dare I say) of them all. In one of her first appearances on screen, she is asked about her body image, which makes her dissolve into tears in a way that feels as if she’s never been asked about it before.

They clearly have a lot to say, but whether it’s due to closely managed PR handling or bad interviewing, the right questions aren’t asked and the probing doesn’t go deep enough. Even the tabloids will struggle to pull any headline-making revelations out of this series, which is telling, given that most docu-series producers know to throw at least some bait to the sharks. I am confident I could get more out of these girls after two pints and an espresso martini.

sam tarkowski james tarkowski married to the game everton fc football
Sam Tarkowski, who is married to Everton captain James Tarkowski, features in Married to the Game
Amazon Prime

If the purpose of the series was to make these women more approachable, or empathetic, it succeeds. With all the above caveats, Footballers' wives get a shit deal a lot of the time – that couldn’t be clearer. But unfortunately, that also doesn’t make for particularly great telly. And that’s coming from someone who loves The Kardashians and Premier League football an equal amount. This series should be a perfect intersection of my interests, and even I’m not impressed.

Married to the Game launches exclusively in the UK and Ireland on Prime Video on February 23

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