Hollywood stars Will Ferrell and Matthew McConaughey didn't have to wait long for their teams to face each other. Both are minority owners in each club, with Ferrell part of LAFC's ownership group and McConaughey in Austin.
Banter among the two friends has long begun.
“Will and I are having a war of words right now, we’re having fun with some words back and forth," McConaughey told media on a virtual press conference Tuesday. "I’ll probably talk to him before the game this weekend, we’ll lay some sort of bet on it to start. I think we’ll have many more bets to come.”
McConaughey has accompanied Ferrell to a few LAFC games since their inaugural season in 2018 and even wore an Austin FC shirt on a trip to the Banc of California Stadium in 2019. He was thoroughly impressed by the atmosphere at the club, which is widely recognized as one of the most vibrant stadiums in the league.
“There’s a lot to learn from LAFC," McConaughey said. "I went to a couple of games there, it was obvious. The product was good on the pitch, but when I talked to the owners, they told me you’ve got to do more than talk about it. You have to be there. You can plant the seed, but it’s built by the supporters."
In addition to being a minority owner of Austin, McConaughey is also the club's minister of culture.
"What LAFC did with the supporters, how they empowered them, is an example of what we’ve learned," McConaughey said. "I’ve worked on that, giving our supporters certain ownership, honor, influence and power. They’re going to be the lifeline of our culture.”
