Euan Holden, ‘Hunky Plane Guy’: 5 Fast Facts You Need to Know

euan holden

Twitter/Euan Holden Euan Holden's Twitter profile picture.

Euan Holden, a retired professional soccer player, fitness instructor, and model, has outed himself on Twitter as the man featured in a viral “romance” story that unfolded with a fellow passenger on an airplane.

The social media story has gone viral, entrancing people all over the Internet who wanted to know what happened to the good-looking man and woman who randomly ended up sitting next to each other on a plane and seemed to strike up a connection.

On the Internet, Euan Holden was known as #hunkyplaneguy and the unidentified woman was nicknamed #prettyplanegirl. Holden is the brother of former Houston Dynamo player Stuart Holden, who is a television game analyst. Euan Holden’s LinkedIn page says he’s based in the Dallas/Fort Worth, Texas area. He’s 30-years-old and was born in Aberdeen, Scotland, a player profile says.

“Hilarious… Knew you were taking pictures ?” he wrote on Twitter, sharing the viral thread posted by Rosey Blair that was retweeted several hundred thousand times. The woman in the story has not come forward yet. On Twitter, Holden calls himself, “Retired Pro ⚽️ You can find me here: IG: http://www.instagram.com/EuanHolden SnapChat?: eubear ?.” In addition to being a former soccer player, he’s also a model. You can see his portfolio pictures here. His Instagram page is also filled with modeling photos.

It took only a few hours to unravel Holden’s identity. Rosey Blair – whose humorous social media story showcased the man and woman getting to know each other on the airplane – shared a close up of what appears to be Holden’s Twitter profile picture, writing, “This is the dude from the plane!!!!

Twitter/Rosie Blair

Blair then posted a full photo of Euan Holden, along with his name and screenshots of conversations she had with him, which you can read later in this article.

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Here’s what you need to know:


1. Blair Wrote in the Viral Story That She Hoped the Woman ‘Meets the Love of Her Life’ When They Switched Seats

Rosey Blair, who describes herself as a “drama queen deep in the heart of Texas,” posted the thread on Twitter on July 3, 2018. “Last night on a flight home, my boyfriend and I asked a woman to switch seats with me so we could sit together. We made a joke that maybe her new seat partner would be the love of her life and well, now I present you with this thread,” she wrote.

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You can read the full story in the thread under this tweet and on her Twitter page. Blair also posted a screenshot of a conversation she had with Holden after the story took off.

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The unfolding series of photos with captions breathlessly and humorously chronicled the supposed romance developing between the two new random stranger seatmates, whose faces were blurred out and names not given at first. More than 339,000 people retweeted the story in less than 24 hours as people declared themselves entranced by the love story and dying to know what happened next.

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The thread includes comments such as, “Guess what they have been talking non stop since we took off” and “no wedding rings in sight!!!!!!!” and “She went into bathroom with her ponytail up and came back with her hair down.”

Blair added, “After I switched spots with her I literally said to my boyfriend ‘I hope she meets the love of her life’ and the hunky dude walks over and we FREAK OUT.”

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At one point, Holden and the woman were reportedly sharing a cheese board. At another, the woman showed him family photos. The woman was said to have placed her head on Holden’s shoulder. And then: “Breaking. They just left for the bathroom at the same time.” After people figured out that Euan Holden was the “hunky plane guy,” Blair communicated with him and asked his permission to out his name.

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Blair later shared another screenshot of a conversation she had with Holden. She has also posted a series of other tweets. In one, she said she’s an actor but insisted (perhaps for skeptics wondering if it was all too good to be true) that the post wasn’t sponsored. According to The Dallas Morning News, Blair, 29, is a Dallas comedian and wedding photographer, as is her boyfriend. The flight was from New York to Dallas, and Blair was with her boyfriend, Houston Hardaway, 27.

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What about #prettyplanegirl?

Blair says in the above video that they don’t have permission yet to share her identity. A name is circling on social media, but Heavy won’t report it unless the woman comes forward.


2. Euan Says a ‘Gentleman’ Wouldn’t Provide Further Details

Euan Holden has written a couple of tweets about the viral story. “Millennials let me help you- it’s #CatchingFlightsANDFeelings,” he wrote in one. However, he has not provided further details, much to the chagrin of eager Twitter users.

“BUT WHAT HAPPENED IN THE BATHROOM EUAN?!? ?” a Twitter user asked, to which he replied, “A gentleman would never say.”

Some astute Twitter users also unmasked the mystery man’s identity, as he is already somewhat well-known due to his soccer career, with one writing, “It’s Euan Holden but I did not figure that out myself, someone else did.”

According to his LinkedIn page, in addition to being a former pro soccer player and model, Euan Holden has worked as a fitness trainer (in Houston), web designer for a jewelry company, and as a social media marketing consultant. In the latter job, he focuses on “developing relationships with brands & companies while growing social media presence and engaging targeted audience.” He’s director of an organization called the Reign Group.


3. Euan Holden Was a College & Professional Soccer Player Who Was Once Drafted by the Houston Dynamo

Holden had a successful athletic career in the world of soccer. “Was one of the top players coming out of high school in 2006 where his led his Clements team to a 21-3 mark and a spot in the Texas state semifinals,” his player bio reads.

Euan Holden “began his career at the University of Connecticut where he made 36 appearances and scored two goals in his two seasons with the Huskies before transferring to the University of New Mexico where he made 28 appearances and scored one goal in his last two seasons of his college career,” his website says. His brother, Stuart, also was a professional soccer player.

Stuart Holden “is the lead game analyst for FOX Sports’ coverage of the 2018 FIFA World Cup Russia,” according to Fox Sports. “The former U.S. Men’s National Team midfielder and member of 2010 USA World Cup team has worked as the lead analyst on the network’s marquee soccer properties including Major League Soccer, U.S. Men’s National Team World Cup Qualifiers, and UEFA Champions League.”

Euan Holden’s website says he “also spent the summer of 2008 with Austin Aztex U23 in the USL Premier Development League. On 14 January 2010, Holden was drafted in the fourth round (62nd overall) of the 2010 MLS SuperDraft by Houston Dynamo. However, Holden elected to continue his career in Europe as he joined Danish sides Vejle and FC Hjørring before joining English club Stockport County in 2010 and then joined Bury in February 2013.”

View this post on Instagram

I'm on a boat ⛵️

A post shared by Euan Holden (@euanholden) on Jul 12, 2015 at 12:53pm PDT

In an interview with MLSSoccer, Holden said, “It was great for me going to England and seeing how cutthroat it is over there, and that’s been great for me as well. You’ve got to know what to expect. You’ve got to know going into it that there’s always kids coming up that are just waiting for that chance to get in.”

Holden studied psychology at the University of Connecticut and University of New Mexico. At the latter university, he was involved in the Cerebral Palsy Parent Association.


4. Euan Holden Calls Himself ‘Multi Cultured With a Passion for Fashion’

Holden already has his own website. On it, he calls himself “a student to the game of life. Multi cultured with a passion for fashion, football, fitness & travel. All things fresh, fun and entertaining, don’t take my word for it, join the movement and lets create something special together!”

With one Instagram photo, Holden wrote, “Family, friends, memories, time. You’ve gotta work hard for a living, but know there’s a line. The life you’ve got is worth living & I’m living mine. #CheckMate.”

Other posts said, “Stay humble, work hard & set a good example… If Kim K & Kanye are your role models politely #Unfollow” and “The future is bright, big things coming 2018 ⚡️!” He also wrote, “A path to achievements unpurchasable requires a mindset unobtainable. Don’t let others own limitations of what cannot be achieved, limit you.”


5. Internet Users, Including Celebrities, Went Wild for the Romance Story & Launched a Quest to Find the Pair

People on the Internet tagged celebrities and played online detective and did everything they could to figure out who the man and woman were before Holden came forward on Twitter.

A woman from Los Angeles wrote on Twitter, “OH MY GOD I TRIED TO RECRUIT HIM FOR A DATING SHOW AND HE SAID HE DIDNT HAVE TIME FATE WAS SAVING HIM FOR #PRETTYPLANEGIRL.”

Monica Lewinsky was among those who followed along and tweeted the above photo of an airplane window. “legit just boarded a ✈️. ?? for a hot ⚽️ player to sit next to me. ♥️✈️ {if you didn’t read The Thread + dont get this … no commenting!}#CatchingFlightsANDFeelings,” Lewinsky wrote on Twitter.

Samples of other comments:

“This is the best thread I’ve ever read in my entire life.”

“I want them to get married ??? ahaha”

“I’m honestly really upset that we will never know if they do or not!”

“I personally think the most romantic part was when your partner organized your bag ❤️❤️❤️”

“I really hope the people concerned come across this thread and update us on their potential relationship.”

“For a few hours today, I was swept away on the wings of potential love. And ALL of you were there with me. I can’t decide what I like more: the love story or twitter loving this love story. *shouts while crying* I LOVE ALL OF YOU SO GOTDANG MUCH! #lovewins.”

“lol who are these love birds. We need to know what happens.”