Actor and entrepreneur Ryan Reynolds is venturing into the world of Formula One racing, expanding his business empire.
Reynolds, along with a group of prominent American investors including his business partner and actor Rob McElhenney, is acquiring a 24% stake in the Alpine F1 team for approximately $218 million, as announced by the team’s owner on Monday.
In recent years, F1 races have gained popularity in the United States, with celebrities flocking to the stands to witness the high-speed action on the track. Alpine, a mid-tier team based in the United Kingdom, is one of the ten competitors in the Formula One championship.
The investors will purchase a stake in Alpine Racing Ltd, the parent company of the Alpine team, according to Renault Group, the French automobile manufacturer and owner of the team. Renault also stated that the new investors will bring expertise in marketing, merchandising, and other relevant areas.
The deal values the racing team at around $900 million, according to Renault.
Ryan Reynolds, 46, has established himself as a Hollywood star, with notable roles in comedy, action, and romantic comedy films. Leveraging his marketing acumen, he has built an off-screen empire by investing in Aviation, a gin brand, Mint Mobile, a cell phone company, and a Welsh soccer team. Mint Mobile was acquired by T-Mobile US earlier this year for approximately $1.35 billion, and Aviation was purchased by Diageo in 2020 for a potential sum of $610 million.
Reynolds is also the founder of Maximum Effort, a production company and marketing agency named after his character’s catchphrase in the “Deadpool” movie franchise.
Other notable investors joining Reynolds and McElhenney in the Alpine F1 team include actor Michael B. Jordan, as well as private investment firms Otro Capital and RedBird Capital Partners. These firms have previously been affiliated with sports teams such as the Dallas Cowboys and French soccer club Toulouse FC.
Representatives for Maximum Effort and Ryan Reynolds have not yet responded to requests for comment. Representatives for Michael B. Jordan have declined to comment.
Aside from their involvement in the Alpine F1 team, Reynolds and McElhenney also own Wrexham AFC, a lower-tier soccer club in North Wales that they purchased in 2020. Their takeover of the struggling club and efforts to transform it have been chronicled in the FX docuseries “Welcome to Wrexham,” released in 2022. The team recently secured promotion from the lowest tier of English soccer to the league above.
The Alpine F1 team has garnered attention through its appearance in the Netflix series “Formula 1: Drive to Survive,” which has helped attract American fans to the sport since its debut in 2019.
F1 teams participate in numerous races each season, with multiple drivers representing each team and competing in sleek, aerodynamic cars.
Having existed under various names for over four decades, the Alpine team was officially renamed by Renault in 2021 to align with the company’s sports car brand, Société des Automobiles Alpine SAS. The team secured fifth and fourth place finishes out of ten teams in the 2021 and 2022 seasons, respectively.
Laurent Rossi, CEO of the Alpine team and the sports car brand, expressed the team’s desire to catch up with top teams and invest in state-of-the-art facilities and equipment in a statement on Monday. Rossi believes that this association is a crucial step towards enhancing the team’s performance across all levels.
Alpine also announced its goal for the sports car brand to break even by 2026 and generate revenues exceeding $8.7 billion by 2030.
The team is headquartered in the village of Enstone, located approximately 60 miles northwest of London.