ONCE dubbed “the most boring man in football” Michael Owen’s choice to sign up for a fly-on-the-wall Amazon documentary about his family was unexpected to say the least.
The former England striker turned pundit, 46, allowed cameras to follow him, his wife Louise and their children Gemma, James, Emily and Jessica as they balance family life with running a horse racing business in Cheshire.
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And it was a distinctly left-field move from Michael, who – unlike celebrity documentary subjects David Beckham, Wayne Rooney and the larger-than-life Tyson Fury – has largely stayed out of the spotlight.
He is seen joking in six part series Meet The Owens that he is now best known as a “boring p***k” or “Gemma Owen’s dad” after she appeared in Love Island, raising questions about why he would agree to film the at-home-with style show.
And we can reveal that the ex-footballer – often referred to as ‘the most boring man in football’ – signed up for his TV payday after ploughing £13 million into his racing business pushed him to his financial limit.
While he may have other streams of income, accounts for Michael’s company Owen Promotions show it holds just £7,219 in cash and owes £2.3m to creditors.
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It also has three outstanding loans, two of which were taken out in March 2022 and February 2024 with Leeds-based MR Denton Properties.
A further loan was taken out in February 2024 with Andrew Black, who co-founded Betfair.
Two other loans with Grosvenor Funding, which claims to offer “fast and flexible” bridging loans were paid off in 2023.
And all five loans were secured using parts of the Owens home estate – a 42-acre estate he bought in 2001 for £4million.
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Speaking in Meet the Owens, which is now number 3 on the Amazon Prime UK chart, Michael revealed he has had to put “£12 or £13 million” into Manor House Stables to build it to its current level.
But he admits the business – which makes cash by persuading investors to back the horses they buy at auction – still desperately needs investors.
And he describes their current status as: “Premier League. Brighton, but not seventh, but kind of bottom half.”
Footage from the first episode shows the racing enthusiast giving pal Jamie Carragher a tour of the impressive grounds and stables, showing off a horse owned by Sir Alex Ferguson and another he owns along with Paul Scholes, Steve McManaman and Owen Hargreaves.
Drone shots show the impressive site from the air, while graphics also flash up on screen showing how the structure works – a handy guide for any would-be investors.
One source told us: “Michael is passionate about Manor House and racing, and he has done an incredible job on Manor House.
“The problem is that it is a big money pit and you can pour millions into it without any guarantee of winning horses.
“He loves it, and would never walk away, but it would be naive to say it hasn’t had a massive impact on his finances.
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“And the pressure is never ending because as a business, you have to buy horses each year – for £90,000 or more – and try to find investors for them.
“Then the million-dollar question is whether or not those horses win, as the stables need winners to succeed.
“But the reality is that you only win a very small percentage of the races in which you have horses.”
Michael is now the sole shareholder for Manor House Stables LLP, which owns the stables, after director and co-owner Andrew Black resigned in March 2022 after six years.
Accounts show the company has healthy assets of approximately £13.6million.
Yet the source said the business still has a way to go before it becomes a money-spinner, rather than a money pit.
They added: “The Amazon payday has come at a good time for Michael, but he is also hoping the airtime for Manor House will attract more investors.
“The more money that comes in, the better the horses and the more winners we will see here.
“That will help the business move higher up the rankings among the top British stables.
“Michael loves racing and he is driven by passion for the sport, but he is also very competitive and wants to win.”
Previously, a source told us: “Michael is extremely determined to succeed in racing. He has poured millions of his own money into Manor House, and he will not stop until he’s at the very top.
“Signing up to broadcast this to the world was a huge risk for him, and he’s desperate for it to work.
“Michael is keen to show off how much Manor House is a reputable and successful stable, and he hopes putting the business on screen ends up being a help rather than a hindrance.”
A spokesperson for Michael declined to comment.