James Bree (footballer)

James Bree

James Bree in 2024
Personal information
Full name	James Patrick Bree [1]
Date of birth	(1997-12-11) 11 December 1997 (age 27) [2]
Place of birth	Wakefield, England
Height	5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) [2]
Position(s)	Right-back [3]
Team information
Current team	Charlton Athletic (on loan from Southampton)
Number	28
Youth career
2006–2009	Ossett Town
2009–2014	Barnsley
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
2014–2017	Barnsley	50	(0)
2017–2020	Aston Villa	21	(0)
2019	→ Ipswich Town (loan)	14	(0)
2019–2020	→ Luton Town (loan)	39	(0)
2020–2023	Luton Town	93	(2)
2023–	Southampton	41	(0)
2025–	→ Charlton Athletic (loan)	3	(1)
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 17:10, 27 September 2025 (UTC)

James Patrick Bree (born 11 December 1997) is an English professional footballer who plays as a right-back for EFL Championship club Charlton Athletic, on loan from EFL Championship club Southampton.

He started his professional playing career for Barnsley before joining Aston Villa in 2017. Bree spent time on loan with Ipswich Town and Luton Town, before joining the latter club permanently in August 2019. He then signed for Southampton in January 2023.

Career

Barnsley

Bree began his career with Barnsley and made his professional debut on 3 May 2014 in a 3–2 home defeat to Queens Park Rangers, becoming the club's second youngest debutant. ^{[4] [5]}

Aston Villa

Bree signed for Aston Villa on 25 January 2017 on a four-and-a-half-year contract for an undisclosed fee, described by Barnsley as "substantial". ^[6] He made his debut for Aston Villa on 4 February in a 2–1 away defeat to Nottingham Forest. ^{[7] [8]}

He joined another Championship club, Ipswich Town, on 31 January 2019 on loan until the end of the season. ^[9] His debut came three days later in a 1–0 defeat at home to Sheffield Wednesday. ^[10]

Luton Town

Bree playing for Luton Town in 2019

Following Aston Villa's promotion to the Premier League, Bree was loaned to Luton Town, who were newly promoted to the Championship, on 8 August 2019 on a season-long loan. ^[11] He made his Luton debut as a 74th-minute substitute for Martin Cranie in a 2–1 away defeat to Cardiff City two days later. ^[12] Bree contributed five assists ^[13] as Luton avoided relegation to League One on the final day of the season. ^[14]

Bree completed a permanent transfer to Luton on 1 September 2020. ^[15] On 16 March 2021, he scored his first goal for the club in a 2–0 victory against Coventry City. ^[16] His only other goal for the club came on 19 March 2022 in a 3–1 away victory against Hull City. ^[17] Bree made 143 appearances for Luton in all competitions. ^[18]

Southampton

On 26 January 2023, Bree signed a three-and-a-half-year contract with Southampton. ^[19] He made his first appearance for Southampton on 31 January in a 2–1 defeat against Newcastle United in the EFL Cup semi-final second leg. ^[20] Four days later, Bree made his Premier League debut in a 3–0 defeat to Brentford. ^[21]

On 23 December 2023, he was substituted with a suspected hamstring tweak during a 1–0 away victory against Queens Park Rangers. ^[22] Manager Russell Martin later confirmed that Bree was expected to be sidelined until the end of January. ^[23] During a 3–2 defeat to Ipswich Town on 1 April 2024, he was shown a red card for a foul on Leif Davis. ^[24]

Bree scored his first goal for the club on 28 August 2024 in a 5–3 away victory against Cardiff City in the EFL Cup. ^[25] On 29 October, he scored the winner in a 3–2 victory against Stoke City in the EFL Cup. ^[26]

Charlton Athletic (loan)

On 1 September 2025, Bree joined Charlton Athletic on loan until 2 January 2026, ^[27] where he was re-united with Nathan Jones, his former manager at Luton Town and Southampton. ^[28]

Career statistics

As of match played 27 September 2025

Appearances and goals by club, season and competition

Club	Season	League			FA Cup		League Cup		Other		Total
		Division	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Barnsley	2013–14 [29]	Championship	1	0	0	0	0	0	—		1	0
	2014–15 [30]	League One	11	0	0	0	1	0	2 [a]	0	14	0
	2015–16 [31]	League One	19	0	0	0	1	0	4 [a]	0	24	0
	2016–17 [32]	Championship	19	0	2	0	1	0	—		22	0
	Total		50	0	2	0	3	0	6	0	61	0
Aston Villa	2016–17 [32]	Championship	7	0	—		—		—		7	0
	2017–18 [33]	Championship	6	0	1	0	2	0	1 [b]	0	10	0
	2018–19 [34]	Championship	8	0	1	0	2	0	—		11	0
	Total		21	0	2	0	4	0	1	0	28	0
Ipswich Town (loan)	2018–19 [34]	Championship	14	0	—		—		—		14	0
Luton Town (loan)	2019–20 [12]	Championship	39	0	1	0	2	0	—		42	0
Luton Town	2020–21 [35]	Championship	24	1	2	0	1	0	—		27	1
	2021–22 [36]	Championship	42	1	1	0	0	0	2 [b]	0	45	1
	2022–23 [37]	Championship	27	0	2	0	0	0	—		29	0
	Total		132	2	6	0	3	0	2	0	143	2
Southampton	2022–23 [37]	Premier League	5	0	—		1	0	—		6	0
	2023–24 [38]	Championship	19	0	1	0	1	0	0	0	21	0
	2024–25 [39]	Premier League	17	0	2	0	4	2	—		23	2
	2025–26 [40]	Championship	0	0	0	0	0	0	—		0	0
	Total		41	0	3	0	6	2	0	0	50	2
Charlton Athletic (loan)	2025–26 [40]	Championship	3	1	0	0	—		—		3	1
Career total			261	3	13	0	16	2	9	0	299	5

1. Appearances in Football League Trophy
2. Appearance(s) in Championship play-offs

Honours

Barnsley

• Football League Trophy: 2015–16 ^[41]

Southampton

• EFL Championship play-offs: 2024 ^[42]

References

1. "Club list of registered players: As at 19th May 2018: Aston Villa" (PDF). English Football League. p. 2. Retrieved 16 June 2018.
2. "James Bree: Overview". Premier League. Retrieved 22 August 2023.
3. "James Bree". Barry Hugman's Footballers. Archived from the original on 8 June 2024. Retrieved 3 October 2021.
4. "James Bree becomes second youngest Reds player". Barnsley F.C. 13 May 2014. Archived from the original on 19 September 2018. Retrieved 18 August 2021.
5. "Barnsley 2–3 Queens Park Rangers". BBC Sport. 3 May 2014. Retrieved 18 August 2021.
6. "James Bree: Aston Villa sign Barnsley right-back and Iceland's Birkir Bjarnason". BBC Sport. 25 January 2017. Retrieved 18 August 2021.
7. "Nottingham Forest 2–1 Aston Villa". BBC Sport. 4 February 2017. Retrieved 22 July 2020.
8. Evans, Gregg (6 February 2017). "Aston Villa's James Bree: His debut, his stats and the way he likes to play". Birmingham Live. Reach. Retrieved 18 August 2021.
9. "James Bree: Ipswich Town sign Aston Villa defender on loan". ITV News Anglia. 31 January 2019. Retrieved 18 August 2021.
10. Warren, Andy (2 February 2019). "Ipswich Town 0–1 Sheffield Wednesday: Late heartbreak for Blues as Joao wins scrappy affair". East Anglian Daily Times. Ipswich. Retrieved 18 August 2021.
11. Chapman, Joseph (8 August 2019). "This Aston Villa defender has left the club as Dean Smith trims the fringes". Birmingham Live. Reach. Retrieved 18 August 2021.
12. "Games played by James Bree in 2019/2020". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 18 August 2021.
13. Rushton, James (18 July 2020). "Aston Villa forgotten man makes bold relegation battle claim". Birmingham Live. Reach. Retrieved 22 July 2020.
14. Law, James (22 July 2020). "Luton Town 3–2 Blackburn Rovers: Nathan Jones' Hatters win to avoid relegation". BBC Sport. Retrieved 18 August 2021.
15. "Luton Town sign Aston Villa's James Bree & Charlton Athletic's Tom Lockyer". BBC Sport. 1 September 2020. Retrieved 18 August 2021.
16. "Luton Town 2–0 Coventry City: Hatters heap further pressure on struggling Sky Blues". BBC Sport. 16 March 2021. Retrieved 16 February 2025.
17. "Hull City 1–3 Luton Town: Nathan Jones says Hatters have reached 'utopia' by moving third". BBC Sport. 19 March 2022. Retrieved 17 February 2025.
18. "BREAKING: Bree leaves Luton for Southampton to join Jones in top-flight survival fight". The Lutonian. 26 January 2023. Retrieved 17 February 2025.
19. "Saints complete Bree signing". Southampton FC. 26 January 2023. Retrieved 26 January 2023.
20. McNulty, Phil (31 January 2023). "Newcastle United 2–1 Southampton (agg: 3–1)". BBC Sport. Retrieved 18 April 2023.
21. Rindl, Joe (4 February 2023). "Brentford 3–0 Southampton". BBC Sport. Retrieved 18 April 2023.
22. House, Alfie (27 December 2023). "Southampton's Bree needs second injury scan and is ruled out by Martin". Southern Daily Echo. Retrieved 1 April 2024.
23. "Patience needed for trio's return". Southampton FC. 1 April 2024. Retrieved 1 April 2024.
24. "Ipswich Town 3–2 Southampton". BBC Sport. 1 April 2024. Retrieved 1 April 2024.
25. Mitchelmore, Ian (28 August 2024). "Cardiff City 3–5 Southampton". BBC Sport. Retrieved 28 August 2024.
26. Thomas, Marissa (29 October 2024). "Southampton 3–2 Stoke City". BBC Sport. Retrieved 2 September 2025.
27. "James Bree arrives on loan". Charlton Athletic Official Site. 1 September 2025. Retrieved 1 September 2025.
28. "Bree heads to Charlton on loan". Southampton FC. 1 September 2025. Retrieved 1 September 2025.
29. "Games played by James Bree in 2013/2014". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 18 August 2021.
30. "Games played by James Bree in 2014/2015". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 18 August 2021.
31. "Games played by James Bree in 2015/2016". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 18 August 2021.
32. "Games played by James Bree in 2016/2017". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 18 August 2021.
33. "Games played by James Bree in 2017/2018". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 18 August 2021.
34. "Games played by James Bree in 2018/2019". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 18 August 2021.
35. "Games played by James Bree in 2020/2021". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 18 August 2021.
36. "Games played by James Bree in 2021/2022". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 10 August 2022.
37. "Games played by James Bree in 2022/2023". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 26 January 2023.
38. "Games played by James Bree in 2023/2024". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 8 August 2023.
39. "Games played by James Bree in 2024/2025". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 8 July 2024.
40. "Games played by James Bree in 2025/2026". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 4 August 2025.
41. Cartwright, Phil (3 April 2016). "Barnsley 3–2 Oxford United". BBC Sport. Retrieved 27 May 2019.
42. "Leeds United 0–1 Southampton: Line-ups". BBC Sport. 26 May 2024. Retrieved 26 May 2024.

External links

• Profile Archived 4 October 2021 at the Wayback Machine at the Luton Town F.C. website