Married to the Game: Five things we learned from Prime documentary of footballers & their partners

Married to The Game is pitched as "offering unprecedented access to the lives of wives and girlfriends" of Premier League footballers - such as Taylor Ward, left, wife of former Manchester City winger Riyad Mahrez

What happens when you're due to play for a Premier League team at the same time that your wife is due in labour?

How much notice do partners get when a footballer signs for a team in another country?

And is a two-month wedding anniversary really a thing?

A new documentary series focusing on the wives and girlfriends of top footballers in the summer of 2023 attempts to answer those questions and more.

Married to The Game was released on Prime on Friday and features the other halves of top footballers Jorginho, Ilkay Gundogan, Riyad Mahrez, James Tarkowski and Matt Turner.

There are plenty of glamorous holidays, massive houses and parties - such as Everton's James Tarkowski and wife Samantha having a big do for their two-month anniversary.

But there are also sacrifices.

Plans can't be made beyond short-term club contracts, partners and children have to be ready to relocate at the drop of a hat, and major life events are scheduled around the football season.

With a few 'viral' clips already being shared and discussed on social media as the series launched on Friday, here are some of the best bits from the six episodes.

Jorginho's 'brutal' response to Cat Harding's proposal comment

Cat Harding is a singer-songwriter and personal stylist, as well as Jorghino's partner

Arsenal midfielder Jorginho has been in a relationship with Cat Harding - a former contestant on The Voice - since 2020 and they have a son together.

The pair bonded over music and Harding is learning Portuguese - Jorginho's first language.

However, there seems to be an awkward moment in episode one, which has already been picked up on X. It is when Harding asks her partner whether he's going to propose that day, telling him she's left the appropriate finger free of any jewellery "just in case".

In what's been described as a "brutal" response, the 32-year-old Italy international tells her the finger is "going to stay free", before appearing to walk abruptly out of the room.

Both are smiling, but maybe the humour was lost slightly in the edit...

James Tarkowski and wife Samantha like to enjoy time in the bedroom

James Tarkowski's wife Samantha puts her own fitness business plans on hold

James Tarkowski married his long-time partner Samantha in June last year and it's nice to see the spark is still alive.

Samantha has an interesting one-word answer when she's asked in episode three what she and the Everton defender most enjoy doing together.

"Do you not remember when we were younger," she reminisces, adding "we used to get in bed and be like, 'this is my favourite part of the day'."

In episode one, Harding also cites a similar hobby, informing the film crew they will have to evacuate the house for an hour when her husband returns home later in the week.

Ilkay Gundogan and wife Sara Arfaoui joke about their opposite temperaments

Ilkay Gundogan says his Italian wife is very "emotional and direct", adding "unfortunately, she forgets I was born in Germany"

Germany midfielder Gundogan has been married to Italian actress and model Sara Arfaoui since 2022.

The 33-year-old joined Barcelona last summer after seven years at Manchester City, where he won five Premier League titles and captained the club to a historic Treble last season that also included a Champions League and FA Cup success.

Arfaoui gives some insight into what it's like to be married to a footballer during the transfer window when she says: "You get a call in one hour and you get informed you have to go. Pick a flight and go and change your life."

Packing for their move to Spain, Gundogan reveals he has "a certain routine" and his mother is "probably the only person" he would trust to pack for him.

Mahrez's wife Taylor Ward 'has no friends' in Saudi Arabia

Mahrez and his family relocated to Saudi Arabia last summer.

Algerian forward Mahrez also departed the Etihad outfit last summer after five years, signing for Saudi Arabian side Al-Ahli.

In episode two, his wife Taylor Ward spells out what a big deal the relocation represents, reminding her husband "Manchester is her home" and he has "automatically got 30 new friends," in the form of new team-mates, whereas she'll be "sat at home" on her own.

Mahrez shrugs and, without showing much sentiment, replies "it's part of the game innit?"

The 33-year-old also appears to have had very limited involvement in the planning of his own wedding.

Ward describes the player's responsibilities as being limited to getting the rings, organising himself an outfit and turning up on time. Mahrez just about manages those things, despite flight cancellations and an issue with the rings being the wrong size.

Ward is also pleased to discover he has even bought a pair of shoes for the occasion, explaining Mahrez caused "uproar" when he turned up to her sister's wedding in trainers.

Matt Turner and wife Ashley Herron plan baby birth around fixtures

Matt Turner says he gives "everything" to live out his dream with the US national team.

Nottingham Forest and USA goalkeeper Turner has two children with his wife Ashley Herron.

During the series, we get a sense of just how much the football schedule of a professional footballer can impact significant family events. In one scene, he even video calls into a pregnancy scan to organise Herron's planned induction, so the actual birth won't clash with fixtures.

Turner, 29, says missing scans and appointments is, "tough," but adds: "I've missed so many things in my life that I'm a little bit numb to it in some ways."

Meanwhile, Herron - a former NFL cheerleader who relocated from the US with Turner when he joined Arsenal in 2022 - says being supportive to Turner's football priorities is "challenging", but saying "I try to have perspective as well".