Everything We Know About Liam Payne's Love Life, From Maya Henry to Naomi Campbell

Liam and Danielle first met when she was a backup dancer on The X Factor in 2010. (Danielle is a classically trained dancer whose credits also include shows for Katy Perry and Jessie J.) After two years of dating, the couple split in September 2012 due to Liam’s grueling touring schedule with 1D, an alleged friend of Liam’s told The Mirror.

Liam and Sophia made their relationship official when the “Strip That Down” singer casually mentioned in a 2013 interview that he was dating Sophia. Sophia and Liam were actually classmates when they were kids but didn’t start a romance until years later – and dated for two years before calling it quits in 2015. Despite their breakup, Sophia “messaged to congratulate” Liam after the 2018 birth of his son Bear, she revealed at a Revolve Coachella party. “We’re all good,” she said. “I’m happy for him.”

Liam and Cheryl first met in 2008 when he first auditioned for The X Factor, where he was a contestant and she was a judge (who obviously let him through to the next round). They started dating eight years later in February 2016 and welcomed son Bear just over a year later in March 2017. Liam and Cheryl split in July 2018, when Bear was a year old. However, the two remain proud and cordial coparents to their young son.

Just weeks after his July 2018 split with Cheryl, Liam reportedly met model Cairo Dwek at Medusa Restaurant in Cannes, France, according to The Sun. The site also reported that the two then vacationed in Lake Como, Italy, where Liam and Cairo were photographed holding hands and kissing. Though the two never confirmed their relationship – nor spoke of their breakup, Bustle reported that Liam revealed he was single in September 2018, thanks to a comment on John Mayer‘s own fan Q&A, of all things.

So here’s something crazy but (reportedly) true: Liam and Naomi Campbell were allegedly a thing in January mid-2019, and the proof is really in the eye-popping social media flirting (no sliding into DMs here – this was overt and public). Take this January 2019 Naomi pic, for example. Liam commented, “Perfection in a person . . . Don’t give me those eyes.” Whoa. Things only heated up after Naomi posted a pic of Liam on her ‘gram, writing: “Beautiful Soul,” with a heart emoji. “Takes one to know one,” Liam wrote back. The two never confirmed this romance, despite being photographed together, and Naomi’s only comment on the matter, when asked by British TV host Jonathan Ross, was a complete shutdown. “I never comment on my personal life,” the supermodel replied. According to Marie Claire, the rumored couple split in April 2019.

Liam and model Maya Henry have been dating since August 2019, making their relationship Instagram official in September 2019. But, according to Capital FM, the pair actually first met four years prior at a One Direction meet-and-greet in 2015. During Liam’s Insta announcement of his single “Stack It Up,” he shared a photo of himself and Maya laughing, writing: “Sometimes I don’t recognise this happy guy. . . sure glad you brought him back though.” He also thanked her “for always keeping the biggest smile on my face through all the stress and making me realise how perfect my life really is.”

Most recently, Liam popped the question to Maya and she said “yes.” “We’re just really happy,” Liam told Good Morning America in September 2020. “Over the last week, I just had a birthday, my son has gone to school for the first time today, so it seems like a lot of firsts for me really, actually, which is great.”