Rockstar golfer Rory McIlroy has chipped in with Manchester United stars Ryan Giggs and Wayne Rooney to invest in a €180m tax-driven property deal.
The Co Down golfer, who is dating the Danish tennis doll Caroline Wozniacki, has emerged as an investor in Waverton Property LLP, a partnership set up to convert a Birmingham warehouse into a data centre.
Through his investment, McIlroy, whose fortune is estimated at €15m, can take advantage of lucrative tax breaks introduced in 2007 in the UK to encourage investors to regenerate commercial premises. Under the tax rules McIlroy and fellow investors — who also include the Liverpool manager Kenny Dalglish and West Ham boss Sam Allardyce — will have to hold on to the data centre for seven years to avail of the tax breaks before they can sell it on.
Investors in the partnership are putting €72m in cash into the property redevelopment, with the remainder funded by debt. Filings in Britain’s Companies House do not reveal how much individual investors have put in.
The 23-year-old is currently the world’s number one golfer, positioning him to earn mega-bucks in sponsorships.
