Sport’s most famous sibling showdowns – including Serena and Venus Williams’ battle for the Australian Open

Tales of sibling squabbles over the last ice lolly in the freezer or a particularly precious toy is enough to make every only child feel grateful. But when it comes to the world of sporting stardom, having a little extra personal persuasion to push you to your physical limits is no bad thing.

Read on to find out which siblings share a famous rivalry, faced each other on the court and who took home more bragging rights to the dining table.

Venus and Serena have one of sport’s most well-known rivalries

Venus and Serena Williams

Venus and Serena Williams are both up there with tennis’ best. The sisters have faced each other 31 times, with Serena leading the way at 19 matches to 12. Nine of these matches were Grand Slam finals, with Serena taking home seven wins.

After a win at the 2003 Australian Open final, Serena held four titles simultaneously. The tennis star is making a return to the sport at Queen’s, and is yet to confirm whether she will play at Wimbledon this year, a tournament she has won seven times. Fans are eagerly waiting to see the sisters across the net from one another once again.

Jérôme and Kevin-Prince’s World Cup showdown made history

Jérôme and Kevin-Prince Boateng

Football might be a team sport, but there’s surely an added personal pressure when your half-brother plays for the opposing team. Jérôme and Kevin-Prince Boateng became the first siblings to play against each other at a World Cup in 2010.

Jérôme played for Germany, while Kevin-Prince represented Ghana. A goal from Mesut Özil secured the win for Germany – who won the tournament four years later in Brazil. We’d bet the result has been brought up at a family reunion once or twice since.

Alistair and Jonny prove that brotherhood and good sportsmanship outweigh any medal

Alistair and Jonny Brownlee

Alistair and Jonny Brownlee were the ones to watch in the Olympic triathlon through the 2010s, impressively taking home the top two spots at the Rio Olympics in 2016.

But the Brownlee brothers famously proved that family comes first at the 2016 Triathlon World Championship. When Jonny lost control of his legs, suffering with exhaustion and the intense heat, Alistair propped his brother up and carried him to the finishing line, pushing him into second place.

Andy and Jamie Murray have only publicly faced each other in a professional adult competition two times

Andy and Jamie Murray

It’s common knowledge that Scottish tennis pro Andy Murray comes from a sporting family, coached in the sport by his mother Judy. But tennis became even more of a family affair when he went head to head with brother Jamie.

In 2015, the pair faced each other on the doubles court at the ATP Masters 1000 Canada and again at the 2019 Cincinnati Masters. Jamie took home the victory in both cases – cause for smug celebration, surely?

Becky and Ellie Downie were awarded MBEs for their work raising awareness of the harmful training environments faced by gymnasts

Becky and Ellie Downie

While some of these sibling rivalries go back years, veteran British gymnasts Becky and Ellie Downie are legendary competitors at the bar – the uneven bars, that is. Becky has been competing at a senior international level since 2008, while Ellie dominated the sport for years before retiring. 

While we’re looking forward to seeing their careers take off, the sisters’ true fighting spirit comes across most clearly as a team. They recently spoke up in criticism of the training environments gymnasts are exposed to and awarded an MBE for their activist work. Ellie retired from the sport at 23 but Becky is surely keen to match her sister’s titles.