Yesterday it was announced that Lewis Hamilton was one of two celebrity sport stars (alongside Serena Williams) who were joining the Sir Martin Broughton bid for Chelsea.
In reality it’s very much a PR exercise – even the rumours only claim that they are willing to put up £10m each, which isn’t much considering the price is expected to end up around £2.5bn. But it’s a nice little injection of PR for that bid.
The Metro today had some quotes from Formula 1 driver Hamilton, who has never hidden his allegiance as an Arsenal fan – meaning he had to explain why he wanted to buy a slice of Chelsea at all.
“[Chelsea] is a team that is all about the community. That’s what really makes a football team, it’s the people in and around it. They’ve been leading in their work in D&I [diversity and inclusion] and becoming more diverse and progressive.”
He then directly addressed his support for the Gunners:
“At five or six-years-old I supported Arsenal but my uncle Terry is a big Blues fan, so I’ve been to so many games with him to watch Chelsea and Arsenal play. Ultimately, I’m a sporting fan – it’s the biggest sport in the world and Chelsea are one of the biggest clubs in the world and most successful.”
As we’ve said, it’s only a fraction of the bid, and in reality the new owners don’t have to have been Chelsea fans to be good owners (although it will make fans feel a lot more comfortable.)
Now we’re just waiting to hear that Serena grew up a Spurs fan…
