Soccer has its fair share of interesting owners, ranging from the lovable… well, the likable… erm… Let’s start over.
Soccer certainly has owners. Each club has its own owner/ownership group, usually consisting of successful businesspeople capable of buying Lamborghinis with the loose currency they find in their sofas. Occasionally, however, those owners are household names. Drew Carey, for example, has famously been a part owner of the Seattle Sounders since 2007 (before the club even officially joined MLS).
There are, of course, other notable names affiliated with the beautiful game, but they might be slightly more surprising than Mr. Carey. Presented here are 17 famous (or infamous) soccer club owners, some of whom you might not know had stakes in professional soccer.
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Carmelo Anthony - Puerto Rico FC (full owner)
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The Knicks' small forward, who is of Puerto Rican descent, has owned the NASL club since its inception in 2015.
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Diplo - Arizona United DC (minority owner)
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The DJ, Producer, Songwriter, and Performer purchased a share of Arizona United SC in January 2016, citing his belief that soccer is "a connective tissue linking the world's cultures."
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Sir Elton John - Watford FC (President, Chairman, and Life President)
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Sir Elton grew up supporting Watford, and owned the club from 1976-1987 and from 1997-2002. He is the club's honorary Life President, and even has a stand named after him at Vicarage Road.
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Pablo Escobar - Atletico Nacional (alleged chief financial backer)
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The notorious drug lord was a fan of soccer throughout his life, even inviting famous Colombian footballers to play against him while he was briefly incarcerated. He was also suspected to be a chief backer of Atletico Nacional, one of Colombia's most successful clubs.
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Gonzalo Rodriguez Gacha AKA El Mexicano - Millonarios
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One of the founders of Colombia's Cali Cartel, Gacha was 1) a major figure at Millonarios and 2) portrayed by Luis Guzman in the Netflix series "Narcos."