27 February 2024 , 14:46
384
0
Rory McIlroy has admitted he doesn't think he'll be following in Ryan Reynolds ’ footsteps by buying a football team.
Since 2020, the Deadpool star has co-owned League Two Wrexham AFC with fellow actor Rob McElhenney. Under their guidance, the club has transformed and the city is buzzing with excitement as they won promotion to the Football League for the first time since 2008.
Despite seeing the success that the acting duo has attained with the Welsh club so far, McIlroy, an avid Manchester United fan, believes his love for the game would prevent him from becoming a football team owner. "I'm part of [an ownership group for] a Formula One team with him [Reynolds], so that was pretty cool," the four-time major winner said while at the PGA’s mixed-gender match. "I'd like to. But I'm so passionate about it that it would be like a labour of love and I don't know if it would be for the right reasons."
READ MORE: Rory McIlroy upset PGA Tour rival after unintentionally breaking unwritten rule
READ MORE: Rory McIlroy headlines The Match as he takes on Ryder Cup rival alongside LPGA Tour stars
Ryan Reynolds mispronounces name of new Wrexham signing in hilarious video
Though McIlroy now says he doesn’t plan on investing in a football team, he previously said he would be open to investing in United following Sir Jim Ratcliffe 's involvement with the club. In February Ratcliffe acquired a 27.7% stake in United, but in October 2023, when Ratcliffe was rumoured to become a United co-owner, McIlroy told Sky Sports that he would be ‘open’ to having a stake in his boyhood club.
"I would love to be able to own a tiny percentage of the club I grew up cheering on as a boy,” the 34-year-old said. "I would have loved to have taken 0.00001 per cent of Manchester United when Jim Ratcliffe took 25 per cent. And if another opportunity comes my way I will look at it.” McIlroy is still involved in sports ownership, however, but just not within football. He co-owns an F1 team with Reynolds and a host of other celebrities.
Last October, McIlroy joined the likes of Liverpool defender Trent Alexander-Arnold and Super Bowl winning stars Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelche with Otro Capital Group, who invested £164 million for a 24% stake in Alpine Racing. In a statement, the World No. 2 said his “passion for excellence on the golf course has led me to admire the same pursuit in Formula 1.”
Wrexham owners Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney guided the Welsh club back to the Football League (Getty)He added: “Partnering with Otro Capitol in Alpine F1 is an exhilarating venture that unites my love for sports, competition and the relentless drive to be the best.” Another reason for McIlroy joining the team was due to his desire to work with the ownership group, which also includes Reynolds’s Maximum Effort and RedBird Capital Partners.
Due to the success of previous business ventures, the Northern Irishman wanted to join and the continued growth of F1 also persuaded him to take the next step in his journey as a businessman. “I thought it was a really cool opportunity,” McIlroy told Yahoo Finance in October 2023.
“I've started to get into investing a little bit over the past four or five years, started my own investment vehicle — Symphony Ventures. We've invested in a bunch of stuff, whether it be within the golf space or technology or healthcare. [Investing in Alpine] was the first real opportunity to do something like this.”