From owning a Premier League football club to being a recognised voice on a national radio station, Simon Jordan has had quite the life…
To many, nowadays, Jordan is seen as a sports pundit, but there are several significant layers to his journey in life.
So, Football FanCast has decided to take a deeper dive into his accomplishments, failures and what made him the man he is today.
Who is Simon Jordan?
Simon Jordan is a widely known figure in sports media. He co-presents the weekday mid-morning programme branded White and Jordan on talkSPORT.
The show covers a wide range of topics across football and boxing – predominately – and is hugely successful in Great Britain. The latest figures last month recorded a record 1.1m weekly reach, evincing its popularity.
Notwithstanding Jordan's radio success, he has also owned multiple businesses, and is the author of a best selling book called; 'Be Careful What You Wish For'. Further, he is a MailOnline columnist.
Jordan, in his early life, played football for Crystal Palace and Chelsea, before being released by the Blues aged 16. He admitted that he had the talent to make it professionally but not the mentality.
How old is Simon Jordan?
Simon Jordan was born on September 24th 1967 in Thornton Heath, South London, England.
He is 55-years-old.
What is Simon Jordan's salary?
His salary at talkSPORT isn't known to the public but one would assume the radio station are paying one of their most prominent voices a sizable sum of money each year.
Jordan's other streams of income, of which include his MailOnline column and book sales, amongst others, aren't widely reported but with his increased notoriety over the last few years, he's cleary financially well-off.
Indeed, Business magnate Simon Jordan makes no less than $11 million (£8.75m) in a year.
How much is Simon Jordan worth?
Simon Jordan's net worth has fluctuated throughout his life. It's difficult to estimate an accurate figure, but some outlets suggest as much as $100m. Others claim $5m, so it seems no one really knows…
Though, in a heated debate on talkSPORT earlier this year with boxing promoter Eddie Hearn, it was claimed Jordan went bankrupt during his tenure as owner of Crystal Palace. He was quick to deny those claims in emphatic exchange.
Here is the clash, in transcript, between the pair.
Hearn: "You are the king of hypocrisy, you talk like you are some kind of business expert. We know how that went for you."
Jordan: "No, no. In order to lose a lot of money, you have to make it in the first place."
Hearn: "It's a marathon not a sprint, mate. You went skint."
Jordan: "No I didn't."
Hearn: "Yes you did, you went bankrupt at Crystal Palace Football Club."
Jordan: "Don't be stupid Eddie I didn't go bankrupt at all, don't say silly things that could get you into trouble. Because I didn't go bankrupt. What I did, as the biggest creditor, because of the biggest banking crisis in the world, I took a view that I could no longer fund it (Palace) anymore, put it into administration and brought out 50 million quid on the basis of the fact I made 100 million quid. So get your facts right."
Hearn: "I apologise, you took the club into administration."
Jordan: "No, I didn't take it into administration, a secured creditor took it there and I had to take my medicine. I've never complained about it, I've never started wining or cried about it."
What football team did Simon Jordan own?
Simon Jordan purchased Crystal Palace, the club he supported, for a reported £10m in 2000, becoming the youngest chairman of a club in the Football League aged 32. He rescued the Eagles from almost certain extinction and spent £25m funding the losses.
During his tenure, Palace gained promotion from the second tier to the illustrious Premier League in 2004, although they did suffer immediate relegation.
The year 2010 saw Jordan depart, and he later admitted to losing £30m during his 10-year stint at the South London club.
Jordan did consider getting back into the football industry through buying Coventry City last year, but he opted against doing so, saying: “It’s a very difficult nut to crack because you have a stadium that may need to be moved or a stadium that may need to be redeveloped.
“You’ve got a property developer in the mix, you’ve got people who own the football club who have a slightly inflated idea of what it’s worth."
He also noted that within two weeks of being at football club, you become villain number one, despite the initial excitement and love.
What businesses did Simon Jordan own?
Simon Jordan cofounded a mobile phone business called Pocket Phone Shop, which was later sold to One2One for £73m, making him £36.5m richer. One2One has now rebranded to T-Mobile.
In 2002, he again co-founded a business. Jordan became a 50% shareholder of a car magazine called 'Octane', however, after four sucessful years, the serial entrepreneur decided to sell his share.
After the sale of Ocatane, Jordan opened up a restaurant Club Bar and Dining in Warwick Street, London. Five years later, he sold the business to Ottolenghi Group, who renamed the restaurant Nopi.
It might not be too long until Jordan begins a new business venture. Speaking on talkSPORT, he admitted a desire to get into boxing promoting and could rival Eddie Hearn's Matchroom Boxing.
"I'm spending a bit of time making sure that I understand the boxing world and that I align myself with the right people. I either buy somebody's business, I invest in somebody's business, or I start my own business.
"And so the likelihood is I'll be involved with somebody's business.Whether that means I go in as the chairman of a business, whether it means I go in as a funder and buy someone's equity, but yes there's an ambition for me to do it," Jordan said.
So, perhaps Jordan's rising profile will continue to rocket over the coming years as he potentially delves into a new industry.