Gary Neville is heading into the Dragons' Den as the first-ever guest panellist on Thursday night. The football pundit and former England player joins Peter Jones, Deborah Meaden, Sara Davies, Steven Bartlett and Touker Suleyman on the panel as they consider investment opportunities from budding entrepreneurs.
But how exactly did Gary land a place on the panel? Keep reading to find out how the 48-year-old made his multi-million business empire.
While Gary is known for his impressive footballing career, he's also a successful businessman and has a reported net worth of £20 million, according to TalkSport.
Since the young age of 21, Gary has been working hard to build a property development empire. He started investing in property during his footballing days and now has ventures that span the worlds of hospitality, property, media and sport.
© BBCIn 2015, he launched Relentless Developments, an investment business that is home to his latest ventures, including the £200m St Michael's development in Manchester. The project, which is 15 years in the making, will see new hotels, restaurants and apartments built in the city centre.
Gary's property portfolio also includes Hotel Football, a luxury hotel that overlooks Old Trafford, and The Stock Exchange Hotel near Piccadilly Gardens, which he owns with ex-teammate Ryan Giggs.
Gary and Ryan also manage the property and consultancy business, Zerum. The pair are two of five partners at the Manchester-based business, which was founded in 2010 and offers a range of services, including planning, project and development management.
© @GNev2/XAway from property development, Gary owns Buzz 16, an independent production company launched in 2017. The company, which Gary co-founded with Scott Melvin and Diana Law, produces live sport, documentaries, digital content and podcasts for clients including Sky Bet, BT Sport and Warner Bros.
The company is behind successful shows including Class of 92: Full Time and The Overlap Youtube Show, which has over 800k subscribers and has raked in over £1million, according to the Daily Star. While he sold a majority stake in the company to Miroma Group, a global independent marketing business, in 2023, the ex-footballer remains a large stakeholder.
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Gary still keeps his hand in the world of football though, and co-owns Salford City FC alongside some of his former teammates who won the 1992 FA Youth Cup, including Ryan Giggs, Phil Neville, Paul Scholes, Nicky Butt and David Beckham. The former players also own the club alongside Singaporean businessman Peter Lim.
The dad-of-two, who is married to former shop assistant Emma Hadfield, also joined forces with some of his Class of 92 teammates to co-found University Academy 92 with Lancaster University. UA92, which was announced back in 2017, offers broader courses than traditional degrees with a focus on personal and character development.
© BBCWhile Gary is no stranger to the small screen, having appeared as a pundit on various football shows, he's now combining his business expertise with his media experience on Dragons' Den.
On joining series 21, Gary said: "I'm absolutely delighted to join the Dragons' Den, even if it's only for a very short period on an interim contract. I'm used to being an interim coach. I'm going to bring character, personality, drive, determination, hard work, all the things you'd want in a team player."
