Wrexham’s Hollywood owners Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney’s stake in Alpine cost them NOTHING
Wrexham’s Hollywood owners Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney’s stake in Alpine cost them NOTHING… with the actors’ FAME attractive to grow the F1 team as part of a £171 million deal
- Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney pursue a different sporting venture
- The Wrexham duo have acquired a stake in the Alpine Formula One team
- But they have not had to give up their own money, only their fame
Hollywood stars Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney have acquired a stake in the Alpine Formula One team as part of a £171 million deal, without putting any money in themselves!
Sources at Paddock have told The Mail on Sunday that the A-list duo have agreed to be part of a consortium taking a 24 per cent stake in the team, which is valued at around £700m following the investment, in exchange for their…fame.
US investment firms Otro Capital and RedBird Capital Partners have put money into the consortium, while Reynolds and McElhenney are expected to generate revenue through their prowess in storytelling and perhaps a documentary series.
The F1 team hopes their profile will rise as quickly as that of Reynolds’ football club Wrexham. Reynolds and McElhenney plus actor Michel B Jordan co-own an investment company, Maximum Effort Investments, which will reportedly own about one-tenth of Alpine’s 24 percent stake, or between two and three percent.
The cash injection is already starting to pay off after Alpine paid off a £20m loan at their Oxfordshire headquarters this week. Alpine declined to comment on the structure of the consortium’s investment.
Ryan Reynolds (R) and Rob McElhenney (L) have acquired a stake in Formula 1 team Alpine
Alpine F1 hope to raise their team’s profile similar to Wrexham’s rise to stardom
Reynolds and McElhenney have proven their business acumen – and gained global attention – with their ‘Welcome To Wrexham’ documentary, which tells the story of their takeover of the Welsh club.
The triumphant return to the Football League in the 2022-23 season will take place next season; the show is a hit in the US, where Wrexham will be touring this summer.
The club’s commercial appeal – thanks to the actors’ involvement – was underlined by the recent announcement that Wrexham’s new short sponsor will be the world’s largest airline, United Airlines.
The US airline’s name and logo will appear on the front of the club’s home, away and third jerseys, as well as women’s kits.
Reynolds in particular is a serial entrepreneur, with a net worth of around £280 million and rising. In addition to his earnings from a string of blockbuster films, he had a stake in a brand of gin, Aviation, which was sold to Diageo for nearly £500 million in 2020, just months before picking up Wrexham.
He also has or had interests in a cell phone company, Mint; in a company that runs numerous dating websites, Match Group; in a sports streaming company, FuboTV; and in a Canadian online financial services and investment company, Wealthsimple.
Reynolds and McElhenney are expected to generate income through their storytelling skills