JOE LEWIS owns Tottenham Hotspur, but you’ve probably hardly ever seen him.
The self-made East End-born billionaire rarely visits the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium to cheer on Harry Kane and Co, preferring life on a superyacht in the Caribbean to trips to north London.
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Mainly residing in the Bahamas on his £112million boat called the Aviva III, he also has a home next to Sean Connery’s former estate and is friends with Tiger Woods.
Over the years, it launched the careers of Planet Hollywood and Hard Rock founder Robert Earl and 70s pop sensations The Nolans.
And according to the Forbes Rich List, he has an estimated fortune of £4.3billion.
Let SunSport take you into the world of the one who is nicknamed “The Boxer” because of his sports namesake.
Who is Joe Lewis?
Joe is a real Cockney who was born to the sound of the bells of St. Mary-le-Bow Church in 1937, making him 84 years old. It is believed he was brought up in a flat above the Roman Arms pub in East London.

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Joe Lewis was born to the sound of the bells of St. Mary-le-Bow Church
He left school at 15 to work in his family’s cafe as a waiter, earning £6 a week.
He then set up other businesses in London’s West End under the name Tavistock Banqueting.
Joe opened restaurants, including the Northumberland Grand, which was the first costume-themed restaurant in London aimed at tourists.
From there he developed the Beefeater, Cockney, Caledonian and Hanover Grand.
He ran his first super club called The Talk of the Town in the 60s where artists like Frank Sinatra, Diana Ross and Tom Jones performed.
At the Hanover Grand, Joe gave the Nolans their very first live show and he gave Planet Hollywood and Hard Rock founder Robert Earl his first job.

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Joe even dabbled in the world of tourist shopping, selling souvenirs and arranging bus tours of London for foreigners and dropping them off at his restaurants.
He sold the business in 1979 for the staggering sum of £30 million and moved to the Bahamas in tax exile.
How he turned his millions into billions…
After moving to Nassau, the capital of the Bahamas, Joe entered the world of currency trading.
It was there that he made tens of millions, playing stocks, as he sought to continue accumulating his enormous wealth.
And it was in September 1992 that he became a billionaire, thanks in part to a wise investment on a day called Black Wednesday.
Joe joined with investor George Soros, believing the pound was overvalued and would plummet as Britain tried to bring it in line with other eurozone countries.
He bet on the fall of the pound from the European exchange rate mechanism and in doing so, he became a billionaire overnight.
Joe repeated the trick several years later by betting against the Mexican peso and grabbed even more money.

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He lives on one of the most luxurious boats in the world…
Well, most months of the year…and it’s not just any old boat.
The Aviva III, built in 2007, is Joe’s mobile private office and is 223ft tall with an estimated value of £112million.
It was designed by German builders Abeking and Rasmussen and designed by Reymond Langton.
The large yacht can accommodate up to 16 people and in sea trials it reaches up to 20 knots (23 mph).
Joe is an avid sportsman as the ship has a full sized tennis court.

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In May 2013, Spurs went on a trip to the Bahamas and were welcomed aboard the ship by host Joe.
Michael Dawson, who was skipper at the time, said: “I had never met him before so it was fun to go there and a great experience.
“What a really nice guy. And that yacht is unreal! But he’s just a normal guy.
“You can talk to him about anything. He logs into all the games, he loves it.
“We just sat there chatting. He made us feel welcome there. It was relaxed. Lots of team bonding together.
“It helps to be able to put a face to the person who invests so much in this club that they want to succeed.
“He’s always watching. He knows what’s going on. He would remember every game, every little thing.”

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Joe has friends in high places…
Of course, when you’re as rich as Joe, you’re going to attract the crème de la crème of society.
His best friend is Tiger Woods, who has called Joe “my business mentor” in the past.
Every year, when uninjured, Tiger competes in the Joe’s Tavistock Cup competition in Florida.
It takes place on two of Joe’s developments in Orlando called Isleworth and Lake Nona.

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Incidentally, when Tiger Woods had his infamous low-speed car crash in 2009, it was at Joe’s Isleworth Resort, where the golfer has a home.
Joe, who also owns property in Argentina and Bulgaria, boasts that Ernie Els is another friend, and the pair are said to have dinner together regularly.
Being friends with golfers makes you feel like Joe is an avid golfer himself.
He is believed to play with a handicap of 14 and has practiced with Woods and Els in the past.

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He has an epic art collection…
When you’re a rich man, you need hobbies outside of golf and relaxing on yachts.
That’s why Joe has an art collection that is the envy of every Premier League owner.
Said to be worth around £1 billion, it has works by post-expressionists Picasso, Chagall, Matisse and Miros.
However, in 2008, Joe made headlines, at least in the art world, with an extravagant purchase.
The businessman spent £26.3million on Francis Bacon’s Triptych 1974-77 painting.
And you’ll never guess where he keeps all his art? Yeah, right… the paintings adorn the walls of his mega yacht.

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And now for something personal…
Joe has been married twice, his first wife was Esther Browne whom he met at his greasy spoon.
She now lives in Ireland.
They had two children, Vivienne and Charlie, before divorcing.
Joe later married his former assistant Jane, but they have no children.
But before he left thinking life was all rosy for Joe, he was touched by the loss.
He lost his father to cancer, so he wanted to give something back.
Joe has set up a foundation to help fund the research, and the charity is run by his daughter Vivienne.

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