The Thai genius

Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha is arguably the coolest and definitely the most generous football club owner on the block.

Ever since his club, Leicester City did the impossible and won the English Premier League, the boss himself has been on a winning spree. He just won £2.5 million at a casino in Leicester the other day and the timing was perfect since he spent quite a bit buying all his players Mercedes cars, besides other lavish treats.

Sharing perks of his fortune is something that Srivaddhanaprabha is excellent at. He famously flew his private jet (which he bought from Bernie Eccelstone) to Rome to celebrate his mum’s 96th birthday. People at Leicester too are at the receiving end of his generosity as he buys fans of his club beer and food all the time.

It is no surprise then that Srivaddhanaparbha, simply known as Vichai to friends is lavish with his lifestyle too. He always commutes by chopper when he has to go to the stadium to see his team play- often landing in the middle of the field.

After buying Leicester City in 2010, it is said that he would often be seen entertaining powerful friends — mostly politicians and dignitaries in the stadium. It was also not uncommon to see him over-ordering expensive wine for friends and leaving bottles unfinished.

And he is extremely superstitious too as Buddhist monks always bless the pitch before kick-off. It has been reported in the English press that the Leicester boss doesn’t let any female employees near the monks —to avoid temptation. It’s also speculated that some staff were unhappy with him because of the tone he used, but many say it’s a cultural difference and he has no intentions of being deliberately rude.

Ranked by Forbes as Thailand’s fourth richest man, Srivaddhanaprabha, 58 is worth $3.2 billion and his fortune comes from a duty-free empire. He reportedly enjoys a monopoly in Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi and Don Muang airports and enjoys extremely close ties to the royals and the politicians in Thailand and that has paved the way for his business empire, King Power, to grow.

He is also very generous with his donations when it comes to supporting charities that have the royal family as their patrons. A huge celebrity in his country, he likes to be seen as a brand ambassador for Thailand. That last name, Srivaddhanaprabha, is actually a title that was bestowed upon him by the king of Thailand. It name means, ‘light of progressive glory’. The title was later officially converted into a surname.

A father of four, he certainly loves the English way of life as three of his children were schooled in England and he has a home in Berkshire. While he loves to watch his team play soccer, he also loves playing polo, owns dozens of ponies and also sponsors the All Asia Cup.