
Hollywood icons become owners of Aussie sports team
The investment adds star power to the Australian outfit who have dominated the global sailing championship, winning a trio of titles in four seasons of the high-speed racing series.
'We're incredibly excited to set sail together in this new adventure,' Jackman and Reynolds said in a statement.
'Hugh brings a deep love for and pride in his home country as well as being an avid fan of sailing.'
The move comes just days after Oscar winner Anne Hathaway sailed into sports ownership, joining a female-led consortium who acquired the Red Bull Italy SailGP Team in what circuit CEO Russell Coutts called 'another significant milestone in SailGP's growth as a league'. Australia's SailGP Team, helmed by Tom Slingsby, have been bought by Hollywood actors. Credit: AAP
Founded in 2019, SailGP pits national crews in identical 50ft foiling catamarans reaching speeds over 54 knots within metres of shorelines in iconic harbours worldwide.
'This is an incredible milestone for us and for our sport,' said Tom Slingsby, who serves as driver, CEO and co-owner of the Flying Roos.
SailGP director Andy Thompson added: 'Today marks a landmark moment not just for the Australia team, but for the trajectory of SailGP globally,' highlighting the 'extraordinary combination of global reach, vision, commercial nous' the Hollywood duo bring.
The newly minted Flying Roos will debut under their star-studded ownership at the Mubadala New York Sail Grand Prix on June 7-8, where they aim to defend their position atop the championship leaderboard.
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


Perth Now
an hour ago
- Perth Now
Eagles boosted as star Giants pair to miss Friday's clash
Coleman medallist Jesse Hogan will miss the clash against West Coast on Friday night, the Eagles also set to be boosted by the absence of Lachie Whitfield. It comes as West Coast confirm their only change will be draftee Malakai Champion coming in to replace winger Jayden Hunt in a likely sub role. Hogan was the chief destroyer in round four when the Giants demolished the Eagles by 81 points at ENGIE Stadium, kicking an equal career-high nine goals against Sandy Brock on the youngster's debut. Eagles coach Andrew McQualter said earlier in the week West Coast had been weighing up which of Brock, Harry Edwards or Reuben Ginbey would take the towering West Australian goalkicker, but they will now be freed up to have at least one play an intercept role. The absence of the Giants' pair, as well as the Eagles missing Jake Waterman due to injury and Jeremy McGovern due to retirement, means all of the two clubs' All-Australian players will be missing. Champion will become the eighth Eagle to earn his wings in season 2025 after Archer Reid, Brock, Hamish Davis, Tom Gross, Bo Allan, Tom McCarthy and Jobe Shanahan. He is also the fifth of the 2024 draft crop to debut and the third Naitanui Academy graduate to represent the blue and gold after being drafted to West Coast. The young forward has kicked seven goals in 11 WAFL outings this season and fittingly plays his first match just days after fellow Kalgoorlie product and premiership hero Dom Sheed hung up his boots. The Eagles will also celebrate NAIDOC week in round 17, wearing the club's First Nations jumper that featured during Sir Doug Nicholls round and the club's only victory this season against St Kilda. West Coast v Greater Western Sydney Friday, 6.20pm, Optus Stadium Eagles FB: R Ginbey H Edwards T McCarthy HB: L Baker S Brock L Duggan C: J Cripps H Reid J Hutchinson HF: J Graham J Shanahan E Hewett FF: L Ryan J Williams T Brockman FOLL: M Flynn B Hough T Kelly INT: R Maric B Allan C Hall B Williams M Champion EMG: J Hunt A Reid R Bazzo Giants FB: C Idun L Aleer J Fonti HB: H Himmelberg J Buckley L Ash C: R Angwin T Bedford J Kelly HF: X O'Halloran A Cadman D Jones FF: H Thomas M Gruzewski T Greene FOLL: K Briggs F Callaghan T Green INT: J Leake C Brown H Rowston J Riccardi J Stringer EMG: J Delana J Wehr T McMullin


West Australian
an hour ago
- West Australian
West Coast Eagles boosted as Coleman medallist Jesse Hogan confirmed out of Friday night clash
Coleman medallist Jesse Hogan will miss the clash against West Coast on Friday night, the Eagles also set to be boosted by the absence of Lachie Whitfield. It comes as West Coast confirm their only change will be draftee Malakai Champion coming in to replace winger Jayden Hunt in a likely sub role. Hogan was the chief destroyer in round four when the Giants demolished the Eagles by 81 points at ENGIE Stadium, kicking an equal career-high nine goals against Sandy Brock on the youngster's debut. Eagles coach Andrew McQualter said earlier in the week West Coast had been weighing up which of Brock, Harry Edwards or Reuben Ginbey would take the towering West Australian goalkicker, but they will now be freed up to have at least one play an intercept role. The absence of the Giants' pair, as well as the Eagles missing Jake Waterman due to injury and Jeremy McGovern due to retirement, means all of the two clubs' All-Australian players will be missing. Champion will become the eighth Eagle to earn his wings in season 2025 after Archer Reid, Brock, Hamish Davis, Tom Gross, Bo Allan, Tom McCarthy and Jobe Shanahan. He is also the fifth of the 2024 draft crop to debut and the third Naitanui Academy graduate to represent the blue and gold after being drafted to West Coast. The young forward has kicked seven goals in 11 WAFL outings this season and fittingly plays his first match just days after fellow Kalgoorlie product and premiership hero Dom Sheed hung up his boots. The Eagles will also celebrate NAIDOC week in round 17, wearing the club's First Nations jumper that featured during Sir Doug Nicholls round and the club's only victory this season against St Kilda. West Coast v Greater Western Sydney Friday, 6.20pm, Optus Stadium Eagles FB: R Ginbey H Edwards T McCarthy HB: L Baker S Brock L Duggan C: J Cripps H Reid J Hutchinson HF: J Graham J Shanahan E Hewett FF: L Ryan J Williams T Brockman FOLL: M Flynn B Hough T Kelly INT: R Maric B Allan C Hall B Williams M Champion EMG: J Hunt A Reid R Bazzo Giants FB: C Idun L Aleer J Fonti HB: H Himmelberg J Buckley L Ash C: R Angwin T Bedford J Kelly HF: X O'Halloran A Cadman D Jones FF: H Thomas M Gruzewski T Greene FOLL: K Briggs F Callaghan T Green INT: J Leake C Brown H Rowston J Riccardi J Stringer EMG: J Delana J Wehr T McMullin

Sydney Morning Herald
2 hours ago
- Sydney Morning Herald
Ruthless Lions crush Reds but pick up more injury concerns
Latest posts Latest posts yesterday 10.15pm Match report: Reds 12 Lions 52 By Iain Payten For a moment, Reds fans dared to dream. After 25 minutes Queensland led the British and Irish by two tries to one and a lively Suncorp Stadium was up and about. But then reality bit. And bit hard. Fast-forward to the 80th minute and the Lions had scored the next 45 points, finishing up as 52-12 winners in an ominous performance for the Wallabies squad watching on in Newcastle. Just how many of the same Lions team will be back on deck in Brisbane on July 19 for the first Test remains to be seen, but the quality of display from almost every Lion who has played so far on tour suggests the potency is squad-wide. Captain Maro Itoje was particularly immense, however, and he led from the front in a physically dominant Lions pack. The visitors were left with some injury concern, however, with fullback Elliot Daly leaving the field with a potential broken arm, suffered while tackling Jock Campbell. Lions coach Andy Farrell said Daly was taken to hospital for an x-ray but his third Lions tour appears now in grave jeopardy. Queensland mounted a spirited display in the opening half-hour, and troubled the Lions with a mix of hard, straight running and deceptive second-wave shapes creating space in the wider channels. And two tries to Jeffrey Toomaga-Allen and Josh Flook gave hope to the home fans that a memorable night was brewing. But a gap in class soon emerged, and it was team wearing red - not bearing the name- that really flexed their muscles. The Reds struggled to get out of their half, and via a bevy of unforced errors, skill lapses and silly decisions, allowed the Lions to build up pressure and, inevitably, points. With Finn Russell calling the shots nicely, and spreading the balls to both wings, the Lions scored twice before half-time to lead 21-12 at the break, and then they kept their foot on the pedal after oranges. The Lions scored another five tries in the second half, and the Reds were simply outgunned. As they chased the game, mountains of errors compounded the problems and allowed the Lions to cruise home. 'We put on the table that what we wanted too early, When we got that traction and a bit of momentum and we stretched them and bent them around the edges a few times,' Reds coach Les Kiss said. 'We just couldn't keep it going and a couple of momentum swings, a couple of easy exits or easy access to our half. And once they're in your on your line and then they're a difficult team to hold out.' Ruthlessly, with nothing really to be gained but more injuries, the Lions even kicked to the corner after the final siren sounded to try rack up a second consecutive half-century of points. And four minutes later they got it. Post-game, Itoje denied it was a psychological ploy, saying it was more the chance to keep playing build combinations, given their schedule doesn't allow for much training. The silver lining for Australian rugby is no Wallabies players were injured, with Matt Faessler and Hunter Paisami both coming through unscathed. Lukhan Salakaia-Loto and Josh Canham had some strong moments but didn't knock the door down in the Dylan Pietsch mould, and Seru Uru had a forgettable game. The Lions led 21-12 at halftime after an opening half where the Reds came out firing. The initially muted crowd came alive when the Reds settled quicker than the Lions, and scored in the eighth minute after some powerful ball carrying. Hunter Paisami breached the line first, and then a big Joe Brial carry ploughed through defenders and saw the Reds on the Lions' line. Prop Jeffrey Toomaga-Allen charged over from in-close. The Lions were sloppy early, with unforced handling errors, but they still managed to keep the Reds pinned in their own half for the next ten minutes. Referee James Doleman was no friend either in the Reds' attempt to exit, with a typically baffling approach to what consistutes legal play at the breakdown. The Lions found an extra man on the right edge in the 19th minute, and Tommy Freeman scored untouched. But the Reds didn't go away, and when they got an opportunity to spend time in the Lions' quarter, they took it. Kalani Thomas grubbered a ball in behind and Josh Flook charged onto it like a train to score and re-take the lead. But it was all Lions for the rest of the half. With poor exits still a problem, the Reds came under pressure in their own red zone again soon after the re-start, and Irish prop Andrew Porter crashed over in the 28th minute. With Russell pulling the strings at no.10, the Lions kept testing the Reds' wide defences. They conceded a try when Uru used his hands in the scrum - on their feed - and gave up a penalty. High-pace phase play then saw Duhan van de Merwe get free on the left wing, and score in the quarter. The second half saw the Lions ramp up their defence, and the Reds simply couldn't make any headway. For the second match on tour, the Lions didn't concede a point after halftime. But they had no trouble rattling up their side of the scoreboard. 'I actually thought the Reds came out of the box very well, but I thought once we settled in after that, once we got a bit of continuity at times I thought we played some excellent rugby,' Farrell said. 'But if we were more clinical then obviously it would have been better for us going in at half time, certainly as far as the score line is concerned. 'I thought the Reds were pretty good, I thought they were aggressive, direct, challenging, all of that, it's not just down to us, it's down to them as well, but that's one of the learnings obviously that we need to be aware of.' Asked what tips he could give the Wallabies coaching staff, Kiss said he felt the Reds had had some success with short kicks in behind the Lions' line, to counter their strong defence. But the importance of field position and exiting your half is crucial, he added, with the power of the Lions inevitably going to take a toll when defending your own line. 'You've got to have the discipline not to let them get easily into your half, because once they get in your half, they're a difficult team to manage, Kiss said. 'They have some good strike players, they use their speed and size well of those starters, but just managing that field positions.' yesterday 10.08pm Elliot Daly clutching his arm in ice English fullback Elliot Daly has arguably been the surprise pick of the Lions and he was seen clutching his arm in ice. Hopefully, nothing too serious as Daly has brought a lot of class to the tour so far. We will keep an eye on this one.