Bailey Smith is single. The Geelong Cats midfielder, 25, has been without a confirmed girlfriend since splitting from model Gemma Dawkins in mid-2024 — his longest stretch of bachelorhood ever, by his own admission. A brief, media-fuelled connection with influencer Tammy Hembrow in August 2025 fizzled into friendship within weeks, and a January 2026 sighting with content creator Holly Kleverlaan remains unconfirmed.
What follows is the full, verified timeline of every known romantic link in Smith’s public life: his two-year relationship with Dawkins, the media frenzy around the Hembrow saga, and his current status as a self-described Tinder ambassador preparing for the 2026 AFL season. The pattern mirrors what other athletes face: like the Sam Heughan girlfriend timeline, every public sighting becomes tabloid fodder.
Who Is Bailey Smith?
Bailey Smith is a 25-year-old AFL midfielder currently playing for the Geelong Cats, traded from the Western Bulldogs in October 2024 on a six-year deal reportedly worth around $700,000 per season (per the AFL Players Association’s 2024 trade summary). His off-field profile generates as much press as his on-field output.
Born December 7, 2000, in Melbourne, the 185 cm midfielder was drafted by the Western Bulldogs with pick 7 in the 2018 AFL Draft.
He was a key contributor in the Bulldogs’ 2021 Grand Final run and built a reputation as an attacking, high-possession midfielder. His career stalled in late 2023 when he tore his ACL during pre-season training, ruling him out of the entire 2024 season.
During that rehabilitation period, Smith publicly disclosed a serious mental health struggle. He spent six weeks in a psychiatric facility at Epworth Hospital, battling issues compounded by alcohol misuse. His public account drew broad support from fans and commentators.
In October 2024, Smith requested and secured a trade to the Geelong Cats on a six-year deal reportedly worth around $700,000 per season. His 2025 debut season at Kardinia Park produced some of the best football of his career. As of late March 2026, a contract renegotiation with an expected pay rise is underway.
Gemma Dawkins: Bailey’s Longest Relationship (2022-2024)
Gemma Dawkins, a Melbourne-based model, dated Smith from roughly mid-2022 to mid-2024, making this the longest confirmed Bailey Smith girlfriend relationship at approximately two years. The Herald Sun confirmed the split in August 2024.
The pair began dating around mid-2022, with Smith publicly confirming it in a May 2022 interview.
They went public at the 2023 Derby Day at Flemington Racecourse, generating a wave of press coverage. Their last known public appearance together was a New York City trip in February 2024, a holiday both documented on their social media accounts.
The Herald Sun confirmed the split in August 2024, coinciding with Smith’s ACL rehabilitation and mental health treatment. Neither party commented publicly on the breakup. The relationship lasted approximately two years, the longest of Smith’s adult life by a significant margin.
“A month ago, I was thinking Bailey Smith was a great comeback story and thought highly of him opening up on his past experiences. Now, he has basically lost that goodwill with me.”
— r/AFL, October 2025 (200 upvotes)
That comment, posted on r/AFL (one of Australia’s largest online AFL fan communities), captures a shift in how many supporters view Smith’s personal life. Fans who once rallied behind his mental health recovery have grown more critical as off-field incidents accumulated through his first season at Geelong.
The Tammy Hembrow Episode (August-September 2025)
Smith and Tammy Hembrow were never officially a couple. Paparazzi photos from the Gold Coast in August 2025 sparked weeks of tabloid coverage, but Smith shut it down by September, telling KIIS FM they were “just mates.” By December 2025 they appeared together in a Tinder ad as friends.
Hembrow, a 31-year-old fitness influencer with an estimated $50 million business empire (per her company filings reported by the Daily Mail Australia, September 2025), was photographed kissing Smith at the Burleigh Pavilion on the Gold Coast in August 2025. The paparazzi images, broken by the Daily Mail, landed just weeks after Hembrow’s separation from husband Matt Zukowski, a marriage that had lasted roughly seven months.
The story ran for weeks. AFL players Patrick Cripps and Finn Callahan publicly dubbed them “the AFL’s Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce.” A Western Australian AFL coach lost his job after directing a slur at Hembrow in response to the news. Even the AFL CEO weighed in, joking that he had visited Bailey specifically to offer “relationship advice.”
| Date | Event |
|---|---|
| August 2025 | Daily Mail publishes paparazzi photos of Smith and Hembrow at Burleigh Pavilion, Gold Coast |
| August 2025 | Melbourne dinner date at Entrecote confirmed by media |
| September 2025 | Smith attends Brownlow Medal Count solo; brings his jiu-jitsu instructor as his date |
| September 22, 2025 | Smith tells Kyle and Jackie O (KIIS FM): “No, we’re just mates” |
| December 2025 | Both appear in a joint Tinder promotional campaign, confirming platonic friendship |
Smith himself addressed the situation directly in a January 2026 interview on the Today Show, acknowledging that initial sparks were real but short-lived.
“Yeah, they did [sparks fly]. But they always sort of fade out here and there,” Smith said. He went on to describe Hembrow as “a really close mate at the minute” who provides personal advice, a mentor dynamic he said he valued given she is seven years his senior.
How the internet saw it
Online communities were less diplomatic. In r/hembrowtammysnarkie, a Reddit forum dedicated to celebrity snark with a predominantly female, media-savvy readership, the consensus hardened quickly: Hembrow had engineered the relationship for social media engagement, and Smith walked away once the reality set in.
“It was so obvious they were done. She doesn’t post OTT content with her kids without reason. She definitely tried to make it seem like they were dating.”
— r/hembrowtammysnarkie, September 2025 (45 upvotes)
The age gap drew particular scrutiny: Hembrow was 31 with three children, Smith was 24. Multiple threads framed the dynamic as a mismatch from the start, though the criticism overwhelmingly targeted Hembrow’s motives rather than Smith’s. That dynamic, where public attention falls disproportionately on the partner rather than the athlete, plays out across sports; the Calafiori girlfriend saga followed a nearly identical script in European football.
Holly Kleverlaan and Life After Tammy
No confirmed Bailey Smith girlfriend has emerged since the Dawkins split. Two names surfaced in early 2026, Holly Kleverlaan and Sam Guggenheimer, but neither link has been verified by either party.
In late January 2026, Smith was photographed with Holly Kleverlaan, a 25-year-old Perth-born content creator based in Melbourne with roughly 8,600 Instagram followers (per her public Instagram profile as of February 2026). The Daily Mail published images from a Manly outing and a subsequent Melbourne Airport sighting on February 1, 2026.
Neither Smith nor Kleverlaan has confirmed or denied a romantic connection. The sighting came days after Smith was separately photographed with Hembrow in a friendly reunion at Manly, which fuelled another round of tabloid speculation about overlapping interests.
Separately, a thread on r/AussietiktoksnarkV2 in early 2026 named content creator Sam Guggenheimer as a romantic interest, noting that she and Smith grew up in overlapping social circles. No mainstream media outlet has corroborated the claim, and no public appearances together have been documented. The thread drew minimal engagement compared to the Hembrow coverage.
No further confirmed sightings with either woman have been documented as of April 2026.
Where Things Stand in 2026
Bailey Smith is single and has been for approximately 1.5 years, the longest stretch of his adult life. He is focused on football and a contract renegotiation with Geelong, while serving as Tinder’s official ambassador for the 2025-2026 Australian summer.
Smith told Kyle and Jackie O on KIIS FM that the 1.5-year gap was by far his longest without a partner. Before this, his record between relationships was roughly three months.
He signed on as Tinder’s official ambassador for the 2025-2026 Australian summer, a role he used to publicly reframe his single status as intentional self-improvement rather than a gap between partners. “I think just being authentically yourself is probably the best thing if there was any way to someone’s heart,” he said during the Today Show interview.
On the field, his focus appears locked on football. The Geelong Cats are negotiating a contract rework that reflects his strong 2025 form, and Smith has spoken about channelling the stability of his mental health recovery into sustained on-field performance.
“You can have significant mental health issues and also be a shit person at the same time. They’re not mutually exclusive. Have to hold him to the same standard they expect of everyone else.”
— r/AFL, October 2025 (521 upvotes)
That tension defines the public narrative around Smith in 2026: broad support for his football talent sits alongside mounting frustration at a pattern of off-field incidents involving women. The AFL issued a formal warning letter to Geelong following a social media post targeting veteran journalist Caroline Wilson and an altercation with a female photographer at training.
How much scrutiny the next Bailey Smith girlfriend attracts will come down to how visibly he separates on-field form from personal controversy in the months ahead.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who is Bailey Smith dating right now?
There is no confirmed Bailey Smith girlfriend as of April 2026. He has described himself as single for approximately 1.5 years and is currently serving as a Tinder ambassador. A January 2026 sighting with content creator Holly Kleverlaan remains unconfirmed by either party.
Did Bailey Smith date Tammy Hembrow?
Briefly. The pair were photographed together on the Gold Coast in August 2025, and Smith later confirmed on the Today Show that “sparks flew.” However, he also stated they “faded out” quickly, and by September 2025 he described Hembrow as “just mates.” They appeared together in a Tinder promotional campaign in December 2025 as friends.
Who is Gemma Dawkins?
Gemma Dawkins is a Melbourne-based model who dated Bailey Smith from approximately mid-2022 to mid-2024. They went public at the 2023 Derby Day at Flemington. The Herald Sun confirmed their breakup in August 2024, coinciding with Smith’s ACL recovery and mental health treatment.
Who is Holly Kleverlaan?
Holly Kleverlaan is a 25-year-old content creator originally from Perth, now based in Melbourne, with around 8,600 Instagram followers. She was photographed with Smith at Manly in late January 2026 and at Melbourne Airport in early February 2026. No relationship has been confirmed.
How old is Bailey Smith?
Bailey Smith was born on December 7, 2000, making him 25 years old as of April 2026. He plays as a midfielder for the Geelong Cats in the AFL.
Why did Bailey Smith leave the Western Bulldogs?
Smith requested a trade in September 2024 after tearing his ACL in late 2023, missing the entire 2024 season, and undergoing six weeks of inpatient mental health treatment. He joined the Geelong Cats in October 2024 on a six-year deal reportedly worth around $700,000 per season. His 2025 debut at Geelong was the strongest season of his career to that point.
