Wrexham's Hollywood owners join group buying into Alpine F1

LONDON: Hollywood actors Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney are joining Otro Capital and RedBird Capital Partners in an investor group taking a 24 per cent equity stake in Alpine Racing, the Formula One team's parent company Renault announced on Monday (Jun 26).

The €200 million (US$218.10 million) deal values British-based Alpine Racing at about US$900 million following the investment.

Alec Scheiner, the co-founder and partner of Otro Capital, will join Alpine Racing's board of directors.

Deadpool star Reynolds leads Maximum Effort Investments with McElhenney, of American comedy series It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia, and fellow-actor Michael B. Jordan as co-investors.

Reynolds and McElhenney took over Wrexham in November 2020, funding the Welsh football club's return to the English Football League as fifth-tier champions in April this year.

Their popular docu-series Welcome to Wrexham has proved a big hit in North America, propelling the little-known club into the global spotlight.

Renault said Otro and RedBird's investment included the participation of the Huntsman Family and Main Street Advisors.

US investment firm RedBird, run by former Goldman Sachs banker Gerry Cardinale, is an investor in Fenway Sports Group, the owner of Premier League side Liverpool and the Boston Red Sox baseball team.

RedBird also has a controlling stake in French football club Toulouse and bought Italy's AC Milan last August in a €1.2 billion deal that also involved the owners of the New York Yankees baseball team.

Alpine Racing, with a factory at Enstone in central England, won Formula One constructors' world championships in 2005 and 2006 when they competed as Renault's works team and also as Benetton in 1995.

They finished fourth in the