50 Cent Announces Sponorship of UK Soccer Team, Following in Footsteps of Ryan Reynolds and Tom Brady

Rapper 50 Cent has followed Ryan Reynolds, Rob McElhenney, and Tom Brady as the latest American celebrity to enter the U.K. soccer arena.

The “In da Club” singer recently announced his sponsorship of Wales-based Rumney AFC’s team for girls aged 14 and younger. It was an unexpected opportunity which arose when the team’s manager, Richie Brown (who also coaches an under-17s team in Cardiff) worked with 50 Cent on a recent tour.

Brown recounted to Sky News that he assumed the music mogul’s answer would be a swift no, but felt no harm in asking. "You expect it to be a 'no' and then when he says 'yes' it's a huge surprise and then you're massively grateful straight away," the coach enthused.

Fiddy started by donating away game uniforms for each of the players, emblazoned with his name and that of his record label, G-Unit. "He sponsored our away kit first of all, and then we were a little bit cheeky,” Brown told BBC. "We asked for a little bit more, and he sponsored us again for our tracksuits." This week marks the first time the team will break in their new duds.

The coach is hoping that 50 Cent’s sponsorship will bring his players a fraction of the media attention that Tom Brady’s purchase of Birmingham City, or Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney’s purchase of Wrexham A.F.C., offered those teams.

"I've been involved in girls' football for almost 10 years now,” Brown reflected. "So I'm promoting it this side, trying to do the best I possibly can, and when you've got someone as high profile a name as him, you just know he's going to take it to the next level.”