Russell Crowe has revealed that he once was just “a phone call away” from purchasing Leeds United Football Club.
The Gladiator star is a longtime fan of the club, after growing up watching them on Match of the Day while a young man in Australia.
And now, in an interview with fellow Leeds fan Chris Moyles on Radio X, he has disclosed how close he came to buying the club outright.
Crowe did in fact invest in the club as part of a corporate takeover by 49ers Enterprise in 2018, but he recalled how “seven or eight, maybe 10 years ago”, he “really did seriously pursue” buying the entire club.
“I just sort of felt that they just needed a bit more focus,” he added. “And I don’t know if you know, but I own a Rugby League team in Australia. So at the time, I looked into it, and [I] was very close, it was really close – like a phone call or two away from me doing it. But then the reality of it sort of hit me.”
“I remembered what it was like in the first three to four years of running South [Sydney Rabbitohs], and how much time it took. And I started to calculate, I’m going to be in Leeds a minimum six to seven months a year for the next four years. And my family life, my kids, all of that stuff, the other responsibilities I have, and I just took a step back.”
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Crowe is also set to appear at this year’s Glastonbury Festival, as part of ‘Russell Crowe’s Indoor Garden Party’.
It will come ahead of a UK and Ireland tour in July, kicking off at the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin on July 1, before heading to Warrington, Paris, London and Leeds, and wrapping up at Eden Court in Inverness on July 26.
Opening support will come from Lorraine O’Reilly at all dates. Visit here to purchase tickets and check out the full list of tour dates below.
Russell Crowe’s ‘Indoor Garden Party’ 2024 UK and Ireland dates are:
JULY
1 – Dublin, Gaiety Theatre
4 – Warrington, Parr Hall
6 – Paris La Cigale (France)
24 – London, O2 Shepherds Bush Empire
25 – Leeds, Brudenell Social Club
26 – Inverness, Eden Court
The actor’s Indoor Garden Party first began back 2009, when Crowe performed outside a London pub owned by the late talk show icon Michael Parkinson, and it has continued ever since.
Crowe also discussed the possibility of his retirement from acting last year, during an appearance at the Karlovy Vary Film Festival.
“You are standing in front of the mirror, and go: ‘Who the fuck is that?’ I am in that period now,” he said. “I will take Ridley Scott as my role model: he is still discovering new things in his work. Or I will just stop and you will never hear from me again.”
“I haven’t decided what it’s going to be. These are two very valid choices.”