Twins in Football

In the world of sport, it is perhaps slightly surprising that we don’t see twins more often. After all, siblings are often quite competitive, so why wouldn’t twins drive one another on in order to be as successful as possible?

It may even be stranger that some twins seem to do better than others, when many might presume that they would have a very similar physiology. That, of course, is more likely to be true with identical twins than with non-identical ones, but it is still interesting that more twins aren’t involved in top-level sports. There have been more than a few in football, however, so this is a look at some of them.

Jurrien & Quinten Timber

Arsenal supporters will be only too aware of the ability of Jurriën Timber, who has been playing for the Gunners since 2023. What not everyone may be aware of is the fact that the Dutch international has a twin brother called Quinten, who is also a footballer.

Whereas Jurriën decided that his best position was in defence, however, Quinten chose to become a midfielder and is the number eight of the Netherlands team Feyenoord. He is the team’s captain, with the pair being of Curaçaoan descent. The twins have three older brothers, one of whom, Dylan, is also a professional footballer.

Steven & Ryan Sessegnon

Just as Arsenal supporters know all about Jurriën Timber, so too will many Premier League lovers be aware of Ryan Sessegnon. The left-sided player came up through the ranks at Fulham alongside his twin brother Steven, leaving the club for London rivals Tottenham Hotspur in 2019 before returning five years later.

In spite of the fact that they are identical twins, Steven’s career didn’t quite hit the heights of Ryan’s and he spent several years out on loan before joining Wigan Athletic on a permanent basis in 2023. The two nearly faced each other when the teams were drawn to play one another in the FA Cup in 2025.

Rafael & Fabio Da Silva

When Manchester United scout Les Kershaw flew to Brazil in the early 2000s, he was blown away by the ability of a pair of twins that were playing for Fluminense. Rafael and Fabio Da Silva were soon both signed up by the Red Devils, joining the club in 2008. Although Rafael became a regular at Old Trafford, Fabio never quite did enough to impress Sir Alex Ferguson.

As is often the case with twins, they did everything together, which included departing the club at roughly the same time. That was in 2014, which was when Rafael went to France and Fabio signed for Cardiff.

Alhassan & Alusine Koroma

Growing up in Sierra Leone, twin brothers Alhassan and Alusine Koroma idolised the Da Silva brothers. Whilst most people looked to Brazil in order to be inspired by the likes of Kaka and Ronaldo, the full-backs were often compared to the Manchester United players when they were growing up on account of the fact that they both played as defenders.

Their careers never quite managed to reflect the Da Silvas, although they did become the first twins to represent the Leone Stars. Interestingly, even though they are identical twins, Alusine is right-footed and Alhassan plays with his left.

Frank & Ronald de Boer

When it comes to Dutch football, most people will know the word of the de Boer brothers only too well. Ronaldus and Frank de Boer were born on the 15th of May 1970 in the city of Hoorn, with Frank going on to become a defender and Ronald plying his trade in midfield.

They both made their way through the Ajax youth system, playing for the first team before also making the move to Barcelona; although Frank lasted longer in the Spanish city. Whilst Frank had a semi-successful career as a manager, working at the likes of Ajax, Crystal Palace and the Dutch national side, Ronald did not.

Jacob & Josh Murphy

Jacob Murphy was 30-years-old when he helped Newcastle United finally end their long wait for a major trophy, with the Saudi Arabian-owned football club winning the League Cup in 2025. Having scored eight goals and got 11 assists in the top-flight, Murphy was touted as gaining a possible England call-up the next time Thomas Tuchel picked his squad.

Twin brother Josh, meanwhile, was playing for Championship side Portsmouth when the Magpies, funded by the Kingdom’s Public Investment Fund, ended that wait for silverware.

Twin Officials

Whilst there are numerous other examples of football-playing twins, what is far less common is to see twins both taking on the role of match officials. That is exactly what Benjamin and Marco Zürcher did, however. Anyone watching the match between Girona and Feyenoord in the Champions League in the October of 2024 will have seen the pair running the line, working as assistants to the match referee Urs Schnyder.

The then 38-year-old Swiss twins had been working together across the Swiss Super League as well as the UEFA Nations League and other European club competitions.