ONE of the biggest investments to happen in football in recent years wasn’t at one of the English Premier League clubs. It was instead at humble Wrexham when Hollywood friends Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney purchased the club with a long-term goal of turning the Welsh side into a global force.
Following their second successive promotion up the English tiers to League One, Wrexham played a 2024 summer tour in the USA against teams like Bournemouth and Chelsea. Running as one of the League One promotion favourites in soccer odds today, Wrexham’s status in the football world has gone through the roof compared to just five years ago.
Now there could be another high-profile celebrity investment on the cards, as American rapper Snoop Dogg has declared interest in investing in Scottish champions Celtic. Any investment into the club would be a massive help, especially when it comes to competition on the European front. But is this likely to happen?
Snoop Backs Celtic?
Snoop Dogg, whose real name is Calvin Cordozar Broadus Jr, is a Celtic fan and holds something of a love affair with supporters of the club, saying in a recent interview that “There is something so special about them” and “There is a reason why their fans are talked about across Europe. The best players and coaches in the world tell you there is nowhere like Celtic Park, and I want to be a part of that.”
As well as having more than 35 million album sales worldwide, Snoop Dogg is also known for various entertainment formats, from TV shows to movies, and he was front and centre at the 2024 Paris Olympics too, where he was a torch-bearer.
Snoop Dogg’s interest in making an investment in Celtic apparently stems from his admiration of the work that Reynolds and McElhenney have done with Wrexham. The Welsh club’s high-profile journey has touched people all over the world, and Snoop now seems keen to consider becoming an official part of Celtic and that he would be “crazy” not to.
A Genuine Fan?
Investment from genuine fans will always resonate better with supporters than anonymous investors operating behind the scenes. Fifty-three-year-old Snoop is one of the most recognisable celebrities in the world and is a fan of the club.
He has been photographed in a Celtic shirt before and appears to be a huge fan of the club’s mascot, Hoopy the Hound, jokingly saying once that he wouldn’t mind taking on some mascot duties as well.
Just how long Snoop Dogg has been a Celtic fan isn’t known. But in 2013 he allegedly approached the Parkhead outfit to see if he could be a mascot for them in a Champions League match against Juventus.
His affair with Celtic, however, stems back to the early 2000s when, during a visit to Glasgow, he was given a Celtic shirt. Snoop and his entourage were given Celtic shirts by DJ Big Al, who wanted him to collaborate on a project.
Other Celebrity Investments in Football Clubs
Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney are probably the most famous football club owners in the world. If Snoop Dogg ever does invest in Celtic, then he would be right up there alongside them.
While there are no concrete plans for this and Snoop Dogg was just enthusing about the possibility of such a scenario, there are plenty of other celebrities who have taken an interest in the world of football by investing in clubs.
Michael B Jordan – The Creed actor invested in English Premier League side Bournemouth in 2022 and attended his first match at the club in January 2023.
Will Ferrell – Hollywood megastar Will Ferrell has part ownership of MLS side Los Angeles FC.
Natalie Portman – The Star Wars actress has a share in the professional NWSL side Angel City (along with other celebrities), which is based in Los Angeles.
Matthew McConaughey – The Interstellar actor is part of the ownership group for Austin FC, which took over back in 2019.
LeBron James – NBA basketball legend LeBron James is a part-owner of Liverpool through the Fenway Sports Group.
Elton John – One of the original celebrity club owners, Sir Elton John, who was a fan of Watford since his childhood, became the club chairman in 1973, a position which he relinquished in 2017.
