The reason why Jobe Bellingham doesn't have his surname on the back of his shirt | OneFootball

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While his superstar brother was making the Earth-shattering move to Real Madrid this summer, Jobe Bellingham was securing a move of his own as he left Birmingham City for Sunderland. With a brother like Jude Bellingham, it would be easy for the youngster to coast off of the midfielder's star power and use his reputation and the weight that the Bellingham name now holds to his advantage, but the 17-year-old isn't built like that and instead requested to keep his surname off of his shirt this season.

The decision wasn't a simple one either, with Sunderland having to request permission from the EFL for the youngster to remove his last name from his shirt. It's been revealed why he has chosen to do so as well, and it's a pretty admirable reason.

Why has Jobe Bellingham taken his surname off his shirt?

So, starting this season, the 17-year-old's shirts will have his first name on the back of them as opposed to his last, and it's due to a desire to forge his own legacy away from the superstardom that surrounds his brother. While Jude is taking the world by storm and making headlines for all the right reasons, his younger brother wants to make his own name within football and doesn't want to be known just as the Real Madrid man's sibling.

Sunderland manager Tony Mowbray revealed as much, telling reporters: "I think he’s trying to create his own identity. He doesn’t want to live off the back of his brother’s name; he wants to be the footballer that he is and show people what he can do.”

It would have been easy for the Black Cats man to take advantage of his brother's status as one of the best midfielders in football right now to further his own career, so the decision to step out of his shadow and do things the hard way is an admirable one to make, especially at just 17 years old. With how things have started at the Stadium of Light too, it doesn't seem like it will be long before he's more than made a name for himself.

How is Jobe Bellingham's time at Sunderland going?

Signing with Sunderland on June 14, the exact same day his brother joined Real Madrid, Jobe's move fell a little under the radar, but it didn't stay that way for long. The midfielder has gotten off to an incredible start at the club and has already repaid the faith shown by Mowbray when he brought him into the fold.

In just five appearances, he's already scored two goals for the Championship side and quickly emerged as a solid talent within the squad. In fact, the 17-year-old has already won an award at the team, being named Sunderland's Player of the Month for his efforts in August, proving his time in the North East couldn't have gotten off to a better possible start.

With his 18th birthday approaching, the talented youngster will only continue to get better from here on out too, making the deal to bring him to the Stadium of Light already look like a stroke of genius. Mowbray is clearly impressed with what he's seen too, calling Bellingham a 'joy to work with' after his brace led the side to victory against Rotherham last month.

How have the Bellingham brothers' careers shaped up so far?

It's actually quite spooky to see how closely the two brother's seasons at their respective new clubs have gone this year. Signed on exactly the same day, the pair then turned in their best performances so far for their teams on the exact same day, as Jobe scored a brace for Sunderland against Rotherham and Jude scored twice and bagged an assist shortly afterwards.

With how impressive the older brother's career has been following his departure from Birmingham back in 2020, Jobe will be hoping to follow a similar path. After bursting onto the scene for the Blues in 2019, Jude spent one full season as a member of the club's first team before he moved on to Borussia Dortmund. His impact and talent were clear for all to see, though, which led to Birmingham making the eye-raising decision to retire his shirt number.

The move to Germany proved to be the right one to make as well, with the Englishman thriving in the Bundesliga and really coming into his own as a world-class athlete. He grew exponentially at Dortmund, and it was no surprise to see Real Madrid come calling this summer as he earned a dream move to the Bernabeu. Things have only gotten better too, with Bellingham scoring five goals and creating one assist in his first four games for the Spanish giants. He was even named their Player of the Month for August, sparking more similarities with his younger brother.

Jobe's career hasn't taken off quite as quickly as his brother's, but he's certainly on the right track. After making just three appearances for Birmingham during the 2021/22 season, he earned a spot in the club's first team last year on a semi-regular basis. He played 23 games for the side last year but clearly did enough in those limited minutes to convince Sunderland that he was worth pursuing. While a move to the Stadium of Light isn't quite as glamorous as one to Dortmund like his brother, the transfer presents Jobe with the perfect opportunity to take his own game to the next level and move away from a club that will always associate him with his sibling.

It doesn't really feel fair to compare their careers as a whole right now, due to Jude having several more years as a regular first-team footballer, but their records at Birmingham during their limited time with the club's senior team do make for interesting reading as you can see from the table below.

Of course, Jobe may not become the player his older brother seems destined to be, but he's still showing plenty of signs that he will be a quality footballer in his own right, and he will do so without the Bellingham name weighing him down.