“Through it all, you kept your head up” - Lewis Hamilton says he’s ‘proud’ of Chelsea star after Club World Cup success 

Lewis Hamilton has sent a message to Chelsea captain Reece James after the Blues' FIFA Club World Cup win. The F1 legend took to Instagram to share the Englishman's post with the trophy and wrote a small caption.

The seven-time F1 world champion wrote:

"Through it all, you kept your head up and kept pushing! Proud of you brother"

James captained Chelsea in the 2024/25 season as they won the UEFA Conference League and the FIFA Club World Cup. Speaking to the media after the 3-0 win over PSG in the final on Sunday, July 13, the defender said that it was a statement win for the club.

He added that it showed how much the club has moved in the right direction and said (via BBC Sport):

"I think for sure we are moving in the right direction, you know, winning this trophy against such good opposition. It's a big statement. I'm happy with how much the club has progressed and how next season we're competing in the Premier League, to win the title and compete and to go far in the Champions League as well."

Donald Trump was on the stage to hand Chelsea the trophy at the MetLife Stadium. The US President decided to stay back with the players for the trophy lift and James admitted that he was confused by the decision.

He stated:

"I think the first thing I have to say is that it probably highlights how big the tournament is. The coverage for the tournament and the final was huge. Answering your question, before, they told me that he was going to present the trophy and then exit the stage, and I thought that he was going to exit the stage, but he wanted to stay."

Cole Palmer scored twice in the first 30 minutes of the game, before assisting Joao Pedro for a third, to put Enzo Maresca's men in cruise control at half-time in the final. Chelsea managed to hold on to their lead in the second half, sealing a 3-0 win and becoming the inaugural FIFA Club World Cup champions.

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Lewis Hamilton almost became a co-owner at Chelsea in 2022

Lewis Hamilton was a part of the INEOS-led consortium that made a bid to buy Chelsea in 2022. Despite being an Arsenal fan, the F1 legend admitted that he was interested in the opportunity and said (via TNT Sports)

"Chelsea is one of the biggest teams in the world. When I heard about the opportunity, I was like wow, this is a great opportunity to be part of something so great."

Serena Williams was also a part of the consortium led by Sir Martin Broughton. However, they failed to win the bid and lost out to BlueCo - the consortium led by Todd Boehly, Clearlake Capital, Mark Walter and Hansjorg Wyss.

Edited by Nived Zenith