The search for Levi Davis, the rugby player and ‘X-Factor’ star missing in Spain

Police in the Spanish region of Catalonia have opened an investigation into the disappearance of Levi Davis, a British rugby player and former X-Factor contestant, who went missing in Barcelona on October 29.

His mother Julie Davis traveled to Barcelona to try to track down her son. She explained that the 24-year-old was going through a rough patch, struggling to find success in either of his great passions: rugby and music. For some time, he had been asking her for money.

“When he gained popularity, he was approached by people who might have had ulterior motives, and my son trusts people too much,” Julie Davis told EL PAÍS.

Levi Davis was a promising young rugby player. He made his debut in 2019 in the first division with Bath Rugby, and in 2020, he made history when he became the first active rugby union player to come out as bisexual.

But soon after joining Bath Union, he decided to take part in the talent show The X Factor: Celebrity. He believed winning the show would guarantee him a career in music. He came in fifth place. When he wanted to focus solely on the club, Bath dropped him. He signed for other clubs at a lower level and combined sport with musical performances. He also took part in the TV show Celebs Go Dating.

Being in the media spotlight affected Levi Davis, who confessed in an interview that he suffered from “depression, anxiety and alcoholism” after the show. “The fame and media attention affected him; and he told me he was not happy,” Julie Davis told EL PAÍS.

A few months ago, Levi Davis told his mother he was being blackmailed over compromising photos. “I asked him who could be behind it, but he never knew what to say or showed proof. He trusted people a lot, but he’s a vulnerable guy, and he suffered for all of us, to not expose us.” The day before his disappearance, Levi’s OnlyFans, created in early October, posted the first full nude of the rugby player.

Levi Davis lived with his mother in Shirley, a British town outside his native Birmingham. According to his mother, he told her he wanted to go on a European road trip “to unwind.” He traveled to Ibiza to spend a few days with his friend Richard Squire. On October 29, he traveled to Barcelona “to visit someone, but he didn’t tell me who,” said Squire. That same night he disappeared.

The last photo of Levi Davis places him at 10pm at The Irish Pub, a bar in Barcelona’s La Rambla neighborhood. From there, he wrote a message to Squire and sent a video to his mother. “That day I didn’t detect anything unusual, but he was having a bad time and was depressed,” said Julie Davis. “He was saying he was being followed,” she added. Security camera footage recorded him leaving the premises, and he was never heard from again.

Julie Davis and Richard Squire met in Barcelona last week to look for clues about the 24-year-old’s whereabouts. They visited the UK consulate, the police, the Irish pub and the streets of downtown Barcelona in the hopes of finding a lead. But to no avail. The two explained that Catalonia’s regional police force, known as the Mossos d’Esquadra, are studying security camera footage in the city. The British police are also on the case, which has made headlines in the English tabloids. Squires and Julie Davis hope the media attention will help the search: “We want people to be aware of the situation in case anyone recognizes him.”

Sources from the Mossos d’Esquadra say the case remains open, and for now, there are no signs of criminal intent. The same sources add that the young man was recorded in security cameras in the city, but the footage has not offered conclusive clues. Nor has Levi Davis been recorded in any hospital or psychiatric center. So far, his bank accounts remain untouched.

Julie Davis, who returned to the UK on Sunday, admits that she is starting to come to terms with the shock disappearance. “When I first got the news of the disappearance, it was a shock, but then you realize what is happening. I just hope my son is okay.”