11 celebrities involved in football as Rafa Nadal eyes Real Madrid presidency | OneFootball

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With roughly 3.5 billion fans worldwide and 250 million players across 200 countries around the world, football is the biggest sport in the world. With that being the case, it's no wonder that celebrities – even those with no obvious connection to the game – seem to get drawn into that world from time to time. Most recently, as quoted in The Athletic, 22-time Grand Slam champion Rafael Nadal claimed that he would one day like to take over from Floreinto Perez in the role of Real Madrid president. Speaking on the Spanish channel Movistar he made his point, saying:

As alluded to before, if Nadal was to officially become involved with Los Blancos, he wouldn't be the first celebrity to take up a role of responsibility within a football club. With that in mind, here are eleven big stars who have links to the beautiful game.

11 Sir Elton John - Watford

During the 1970s Sir Elton became one of the first global superstars to make their presence felt at a football club. Indeed, having gone to Watford matches at Vicarage Road from the age of five with his father, the musician used his fame to help raise funds for the club by playing at the stadium in front of more than 30,000 spectators.

He later bought the club and became Chairman and President in 1976, forming a formidable partnership with iconic manager Graham Taylor as the Hornets made it all the way up into the top flight of English football, having once been at the very bottom of the entire EFL. He no longer owns the side but remains an honorary life president.

10 Ed Sheeran - Ipswich Town

Sticking with red-haired musicians who have an interest in English football clubs, we next have Sheeran who has been one of the world's biggest pop stars for over a decade now. And since 2021, the singer has sponsored his boyhood team Ipswich Town.

Indeed, for the past three seasons, his album designs have been displayed on the front of the team shirts of both the men’s and women’s first teams. What's more, he was also named in the official squad list for 2021-2022, and was even given the number 17 shirt.

9 Stormzy - AFC Croydon Athletic

Another big name within the music world right now, Stormzy has had three consecutive number-one albums in the UK and is right up there with Sheeran as one of the globe's biggest stars. He is actually an avid Man United fan but has investments in a team at a much lower level.

This summer, the grime artist teamed up with former Crystal Palace forward Wilfried Zaha in part of a consortium (alongside ex-Eagles kit man Danny Young) to take over non-league outfit AFC Croydon Athletic – who currently play nine tiers below the Premier League. All involved have strong ties to that part of London and hope the entire community will benefit from their ownership.

8 Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney - Wrexham

Since Reynolds and McElhenney took over in 2021, Wrexham have gone from strength to strength and thanks to the publicity gained from the Welcome to Wrexham documentary are now one of the best-known clubs in the game (at least for those who follow the sport in America).

The A-list owners have already helped the club grow massively in terms of global reputation, but have also overseen immediate success on the pitch as theRed Dragons gained promotion into League 2 last term, ending a 15-year spell outside of the EFL.

7 LeBron James - Liverpool

The Basketball star chose a pretty good time to invest in Liverpool as he became a part owner of Liverpool in 2011. His ties with Fenway Sports Group (FSG) helped him secure a two per cent stake in the Reds. In the years that followed, the English team tasted great success as they won the Champions League and Premier League with James on board.

His percentage was initially worth around £4.9m but that figure had grown to be worth as much as £24m by 2018 (as per ESPN) and has continued to rise ever since, largely thanks to the on-field achievements under current manager Jurgen Klopp

6 Delia Smith - Norwich City

Having joined the club's board way back in 1996, Smith – who grew to fame as a cookery writer, author and television personality – is Norwich City's joint majority shareholder, alongside her husband, Michael Wynn Jones. She is best remembered at the club for her infamous outburst in which she took to the pitch at half-time during a 3-2 home defeat to Manchester City in 2005.

Trying to encourage the quiet fans to make Carrow Road a little more intimidating for the opposition, she grabbed the microphone and shouted into the public address system: "This is a message for possibly the best supporters in the world. We need a 12th man here. Where are you? Where are you? "Let's be having you! Come on!". She later admitted to regretting the incident.

5 Tom Brady - Birmingham City

This summer, the seven-time Superbowl winner joined the Birmingham City board as a minority owner. Brady retired from NFL last February and so has more time on his hands to delve into different interests. It's understood that he will work closely with the club on global marketing efforts and the identification of new commercial partnership opportunities, while also aiming to make them a respected leader in nutrition, health, wellness, and recovery within the sport.

It's too early to say if he genuinely will have much of an impact on the club, but they've made a reasonable start to life in the Championship, and currently sit sixth in the division after six games. Perhaps with some star power onboard, they'll be inspired to make a real push for promotion.

4 Robert Plant - Wolves

Led Zeppelin lead singer Plant has been vice president of Wolves since back in 2009. He has supported the club since a boy, and first attended a game when he was just five years old.

After 55 years of following the club, he was named as vice president on the pitch during half-time of the club’s Premier League fixture with West Ham United at Molineux on 14th August 2009. At the time, he said he was he was both “flattered" and "embarrassed” to be given the honour.

3 Michael B. Jordan - AFC Bournemouth

The American actor – of Black Panther fame – is part of an ownership team that took charge of Bournemouth in December 2022. Jordan joined American businessman Bill Foley in investing as a £120m takeover was completed late last year.

On becoming a minority owner, he said: “We thought it through. A team that was in the Premier League and competitive, a great culture and people there in Bournemouth. And a franchise we felt like we could add value and try to help get the team over the hump. It's cool. It’s a cool team. The players are extremely talented and good people."

2 Natalie Portman - Angel City FC

Sticking with Hollywood, Portman acts as a co-founder and part-owner of NWSL team Angel City FC, who formed in 2020. She is one of many stars to have helped get the club off the ground, with Eva Longoria, Jennifer Garner, Uzo Aduba, Serena Williams, Billie Jean King and Jessica Chastain all involved to varying degrees.

Christen Press, Sydney Leroux, and Ali Riley are some big names to be in the current squad. They officially entered the league in 2022, finishing eighth in their debut season. Like Wrexham, a documentary has also been made about the team, called Angel City.

1 Will Ferrell - Los Angeles FC

Staying in Los Angeles for out final entry, actor Ferrell has been co-owner of American outfit LAFC since 2016, with the club playing their first MLS match two years later. At the time, the comedian even joked: "I've never been a part-owner of anything,” before correcting himself to add: “I'm still a part owner of an '84 Toyota Camry with my brother."

In 2019, LAFC won their first major MLS trophy, the Supporters' Shield. They later won the same award in 2022, while also lifting the MLS Cup for the first time in their history in the same year having beaten Philadelphia Union on penalties after a 128th-minute equaliser from Gareth Bale.