The 20-year-old central midfielder has signed a contract with the club until the summer of 2027, plus a one-year option. She makes the move from Barcelona in her native Spain, who she has represented since 2019 and is a product of their Academy. 

A dynamic and intelligent player with excellent technical ability, Bartel has been captain for both club and country showing leadership skills at a young age. She has enjoyed plenty of success at domestic and international level during her early career. 

Speaking for the first time as a Chelsea player, Bartel commented: ‘I am very happy to be here at Chelsea. It’s one of the biggest clubs in Europe and I am very excited to be part of this club.’ 

General manager Paul Green added: ‘Julia is a top young player, who is technically excellent and has good pedigree coming through at Barcelona and the Spanish international youth teams. 

‘She has good leadership skills for someone at a young age and we look forward to seeing her develop in the upcoming years.’ 

 Having started her domestic career with Espanyol in their youth team, Bartel made the move to Barcelona in 2019 where she has enjoyed domestic league and cup triumphs as well as success on the European stage. 

She has primarily represented Barcelona in their B team and scored two goals in their final league game of the 2023/24 campaign, which helped them to secure the title in the Spanish second division. 

On the international stage, Bartel was instrumental in Spain winning the Under-20 World Cup in 2022 where she was named in the team of the tournament. She also won the Under-19 European Championship last summer and played every game in both competitions. 

Everyone at Chelsea warmly welcomes Julia to the club, and we wish her every success for the upcoming years as a Blue!