Rio Ferdinand’s son admits he 'hated’ stepmum Kate and tried to sabotage dad's relationship

Tate Ferdinand has admitted that he used to have a rocky relationship with his stepmother, Kate, as he felt ‘loyal’ towards his late mum.

The 17-year-old is the son of former professional footballer Rio Ferdinand and his late wife Rebecca, who tragically died in 2015, aged just 34, following a battle with breast cancer.

Tate was heartbreakingly just six years old when his mum passed away, while his brother Lorenz, 19, was eight, and their sister, Tia, 15, was four.

The teen has opened up on what it was like to welcome Kate into the family, and how he initially struggled to come to terms with it.

The Only Way Is Essex star, 35, began dating the TV pundit, 47, in 2017, and they tied the knot in Turkey in September 2019, before welcoming two children together - Cree, five, and Shae, two.

Speaking candidly on this week's episode of Kate's Blended podcast, Tate admitted: “At the start, I felt so guilty for liking Kate and loving Kate. I felt guilty for my mum’s family, for my mum. It’s a really weird feeling.”

The 17-year-old has admitted he didn't have the easiest relationship with his step-mum to begin with (YouTube/Blended)

He explained, “One part of me really likes her and wants to like her. And then the other part of me thinks, ‘Oh, there’s a loyalty towards my mum here, what am I doing?’”

“There’s not really a right or wrong thing to do. I was stuck in no man’s land for a couple of years thinking, ‘What do I do?’” he revealed, “But then after a while you go with what you feel and that’s it really.”

Kate also spoke about her memories from that time, recalling a time where she collected a gift for Rio, and Tate accused her of 'meeting random men on the drive'.

The former TOWIE star said: “'Once I got a phone for Rio and the kids were asleep... someone came to drop it on the drive, and they're a man.

“Tate told people that when dad's not there, I'm meeting men on the drive. So then a few people thought that when Rio was out, I was meeting random guys on the drive.”

Tate's mum, Rebecca, died in 2015 aged just 34 following a battle with breast cancer (Mike Marsland/Getty Images)

Tate responded: “You just had a hater in the house. I used to be so jealous. Not jealous, I don't even know the word, but I would try and like get into all of your business.”

He added: “'I remember when I hated you. I hated you. And then we might do something good, and then I would flip straight away back into loving mode, and then I'd have to almost lie about what I did before to get myself out of it.”

The duo also discussed another specific instance where Kate was trying to hide a Valentine’s Day balloon she’d bought for Rio, which ‘spiralled out of control’ after they said she ‘locked them in the room’.

Kate explained: “'I said to the kids, ‘Right, go in that room. Close the door,’ because I had a delivery coming.

“How it's come out is, 'When dad's not there, Kate locks us in the room.'"

Tate had feelings of 'guilt' when his dad started dating again after his mum's death (Instagram/@tateferdinand5)

Recalling how he remembers it, Tate said: “I was just in such a confused state of mind. I didn't know what was going on. Dad didn't really like surprise us with things like that.

“So that was like a bit of a weird thing, like, 'why am I being told to stay in here for five minutes?' You come back as if nothing's happened.”

He admitted it took him around two years to come to terms with how he felt about Kate, and now, they have a close bond.

Kate told the teen: “There's no competition between me and your mum. Your mum's your mum, your mum's always going to be your mum 'If your mum was here, I wouldn't be here doing what I'm doing right now.”