Which Celebrities Support The Smallest Football Teams?
Often you’ll find that the biggest celebrities ‘support’ the biggest teams. For example, Stormzy supports Manchester United, Idris Elba supports Arsenal and Tom Holland supports Tottenham. But this is not always the case. Sometimes celebrities either grew up supporting a smaller team and have kept that love into adulthood, or they now own shares in a club. Here are some celebrities who don’t support one of the traditionally big teams in England.
Musical composer Andrew Lloyd Webber was born in London in 1948 and grew up, alongside his brother Juilan, supporting Leyton Orient. Lloyd Webber wrote musicals such as Cats and The Phantom of the Opera. The London club saw their glory years in his childhood, getting promoted to the top flight for the first time in their history in 1961-62.
One of Lloyd Webber’s albums came as a result of his support for Leyton Orient, as it was written after he made a bet with his brother on the outcome of the club’s final game of the 1976-77 season. Julian won the bet, which then forced Andrew into writing a classical album, rather than the rock musicals that he was used to.
Tim Henman was known for his tennis ability in his career, but as a child he excelled in all sports. If it wasn’t for both of his parents having a very keen interest in tennis, he could have well tried his hand at football or cricket. Born in Oxfordshire in 1974, Henman is a lifelong supporter of Oxford United and still lives in the area today.
During his childhood, Oxford United were in Division One and even managed to win the League Cup, known as the Milk Cup back then. They beat Queens Park Rangers in the final at Wembley in 1986 and would have qualified for European football in the next season if English teams hadn’t been banned.
The legendary actor, whose career has spanned seven decades, is the current president of the Huddersfield Town academy. He was born in Mirfield in Yorkshire in 1940 and has been a follower of the Terriers since childhood.
It's 7:00 am on the West Coast but it's kick-off time for Match 1 of the Championsip at Huddersfield - GO TOWN - GO. pic.twitter.com/dHFX2MVzwo
— Patrick Stewart (@SirPatStew) August 9, 2014
In his lifetime, Huddersfield have seen numerous promotions and relegations. Just after the turn of the century, Huddersfield were bankrupt and had just four senior players on their books in the fourth tier, but by 2017, Sir Patrick Stewart was watching them win the Championship playoffs at Wembley and return to the top flight.
When asked what his dream job would be if he wasn’t a politician, former Prime Minister Rishi Sunak answered that running Southampton football club would make him a very happy man. He was born in the city in 1980 and in his lifetime, he too has witnessed the ups and downs of supporting a team that isn’t traditionally in the ‘big six’.
🚨🚨| Southampton fan Rishi Sunak was at St Mary’s for their win over Plymouth tonight.
— Transfer Sector (@TransferSector) December 29, 2023
Saints boss Russell Martin was asked if the PM had come to the dressing room to see the team: “He might have come down. I have no interest in saying hello.”
[@LewisSteele_] pic.twitter.com/KTw9XAhQoe
Sunak became Prime Minister in 2022 at the age of 42, making him the youngest to take the position since 1812. He served as Prime Minister for two years before losing the 2024 General Election to Labour’s Sir Keir Starmer. During his time in office, he was often seen at St Mary’s to attend home games.
The only person on this list that hasn’t been supporting their club for their whole life, Michael B. Jordan only became a Bournemouth fan when he became a minority shareholder in the club in 2022. He first attended a home game in December 2022, and has since been watching as much as he can from the USA.
Hello, Michael B. Jordan 🔥 pic.twitter.com/3AaFhlsgfq
— AFC Bournemouth 🍒 (@afcbournemouth) July 20, 2024
He often posts about the club on his Instagram and this summer he worked in conjunction with the Cherries to create two special kits which they wore in their USA tour. The 37 year old actor said: “Having the opportunity to design a kit has been a project I have been excited to work on since joining the club.” It is clear that he is happy being involved at the club and he has certainly evolved into a keen fan of the club.
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