Europe’s football elite are all in France right now, competing in Euro 2016. But where do they escape to once they’ve left the dressing room? Here’s our pick of sunny footballer hangouts in four countries with their eye on the Euros trophy…
Spain
Sightings of football stars are common at the 1,400 acre La Manga Club in Murcia. Boasting eight FIFA-standard football pitches, it is a popular training destination for top European and national squads. It also includes three championship golf courses, a Leadbetter golf academy, a 28-court tennis centre, a 2,000-square-metre spa and fitness centre, a five star hotel and some stunning properties to choose from.
Elsewhere, the Costa del Sol hot spots of Marbella, Puerto Banús, Benahavís, and further west, Sotogrande, remain fashionable second home destinations amongst celebrity sports people. This smart ground-floor apartment is on the Los Flamingos Golf Resort on the edge of Benahavís – click on it for more info.
Italy
Former England star Peter Crouch is one of a number of footie stars who have been spotted on the Costa Smeralda, an exclusive corner of the Italian island Sardinia that ranks alongside Capri on the celebrity scale. It’s an ‘in’ place to be seen lounged on the deck on a multi-million-pound super yacht.
Sardinia is also home to the highly acclaimed Forte Village hotel and leisure resort, which has hosted the England and German national squads, as well as Italy’s top clubs, and was used for a base for teams during the 1990 Football World Cup in Italy. A bit like Spain’s La Manga, the sports facilities – including football – are world class, which will explain why Chelsea FC runs a football academy there. Another place you’re likely to see celebs hanging out is at the Costa Smeralda’s exclusive Pevero Golf Club. As this pretty villa, 250 metres from the beach, reveals, you don’t need to be earning a Premiership salary to buy a property in Sardinia.
Portugal
The Algarve’s famous Quinta do Lago resort has arguably the highest concentration of footballer homeowners of all European resorts, including Steven Gerrard, Alan Shearer, Teddy Sheringham and Kevin Keagan. The resort’s celebrated wide, shady boulevards are home to a choice of luxury, gated villas, offering privacy for those that need it! Much of life at Quinta revolves around golf, specifically on its three championship golf courses and at its Paul McGinley Golf Academy, or on its pristine beaches that form part of the Ria Formosa Natural Park. Next door to Quinta is the older, but equally desirable, Vale do Lobo resort. Purchase this attractive four bedroom villa in Quinta and you may well bump into a footballer or two.
France
For the host of Euro 2016, celebrity haunts aren’t limited to Cannes or other glitzy hot spots on the Côte d’Azur – a number of its Alpine ski resorts are just as popular with the world’s jet set and football superstars. Courchevel, in particular Courchevel 1850, is top of this list. Thanks to its designer boutiques, Michelin-Star restaurants and multi-million-euro chalets, it’s become a playground for the super wealthy. Courchevel’s celebrity fan club includes footballing legend David Beckham and wife Posh, as well as Kate Moss, George Clooney, Lionel Richie and jet set Russians, including Roman Abramovich. Courchevel, which comprises four ‘villages’, is part of Les Trois Vallées ski area, the world’s largest that includes equally fashionable Méribel. This three-bedroom apartment is near the slopes of Courchevel 1850.
