Bolton Wanderers' 3 most famous celebrity supporters ft Paddy McGuinness | OneFootball

These three familiar faces all have a love for the Trotters

Key Takeaways

Bolton Wanderers fans have had some journey since over the past few years, with the club playing in each of the top four tiers over the past 13 seasons.

From flying high in the Premier League to battling for promotion in the fourth tier, Trotters supporters have seen it all in recent times, with four relegations and two promotions, as well as two unsuccessful playoff campaigns.

The club also lifted the Bristol Street Motors Trophy last year, where we saw a number of household names that have an allegiance with Wanderers show their face at Wembley Stadium, for the showdown with Plymouth Argyle.

There are a number of celebrities that follow Ian Evatt’s side, and here we take a look at three of the most high-profile names to pledge an allegiance to the club.

Paddy McGuinness

No likey, no lighty!

Star of plenty of shows such as Take Me Out, Phoenix Nights, and Max and Paddy’s Road To Nowhere, Paddy McGuinness has never shied away from his love for Wanderers.

The Top Gear presenter also helped to lead his team out on that historic day at Wembley last season, and held the trophy aloft alongside fellow Trotters fan Vernon Kay (more on him later).

Speaking after that game, McGuinness said: "On my way back home. What a day, what a game. I was there nigh on 36 years when we got beat in the Freight Rover against Bristol City. I was there for that long journey. That one was at the old Wembley.

"I was at the 5-0 battering that Stoke gave us [2011 FA Cup semi-final]. That was another gutter. That's why today feels all the more sweeter."

Vernon Kay

Vernon Kay is another celeb who is a keen Trotters supporter, with the former Family Fortunes presenter also at the Home of Football to see his side claim their latest piece of silverware last year.

The 50-year-old spoke out about his team’s demise back in 2019, when financial issues saw the club drop from the Championship to League Two within two seasons.

Speaking at the time, Kay said: “Bolton Wanderers is one of the founding fathers of the Football League and it was really sad to see them go into this sticky situation. No-one wants to see what happened to Bury happen to anyone else.

“We were paying great wages, we had great players, we were in the Premier League for a long period of time and then as soon as you get relegated and those parachute payments finish it’s very, very difficult to get out of the Championship. And we learned the hard way, unfortunately.

“The new owners are brilliant. They have already back paid everyone’s wages and said ‘right, let’s build this club literally from the foundations, back up.’

“And if we get relegated, which we probably will again, I don’t mind, because we’re in safe hands and we’ll start again.”

Amir Khan

Former boxer Amir Khan has always been a regular at Wanderers, with the local lad even joining in the promotion celebrations with the side as they returned to the Championship from League One in 2017.

The Olympian was also prepared to be part of a takeover of the club by Sports Shield Consortium when they were facing financial difficulties a few years back.

Khan also fought at the Reebok Stadium - as it was known at the time - back in 2005, where he defeated Cuba’s Mario Kindelan in front of 2,000 fans.