Mum of 3 who keeps £120m ace Bale’s feet firmly on the ground
( WELL, MOST OF THE TIME!)
bed semi in Whitchurch, Cardiff. Gareth and his family are regular visitors – with the Wales international using his private jet to fly home.
Bale, who earns £650,000 a week, can often be seen on the streets of the Welsh capital with Emma and two daughters Alba Violet, five, Nava, two, and now newborn son Axel in tow.
Neighbours at his parents’ home said the couple had been enjoying spending time with the grandchildren.
One said: “They are very nice people but they haven’t told me any details of the wedding at all. I wish Gareth and Emma all the best – it’s great to see how well he has turned out.”
The rock in Bale’s life has always been Emma. She is believed to have been key in helping him adapt to the challenges of moving to Madrid. T he couple have carved out a quiet life in a £6million home in La Finca, a 20-minute drive from the capital. He counts team-mate Cristiano Ronaldo and manager Zinedine Zidane among their neighbours.
Bale likes nothing more than spending time with his family there.
He once said: “I don’t go out, so I don’t get attention from girls. I know people of my age like to go clubbing but it doesn’t interest me that much. I like chilling indoors, watching DVDs or going for a meal with the family.” Bale prefers “clubbing” of a different kind – he is an avid golfer.
In March, his garden in South Wales was turned into a “mini golf course” and it features copies of some of the world’s most legendary holes.
He said in March: “I decided I’d love to make a dream come true and build a mini golf course in my house.”
Emma, a former hairdresser, has largely stayed out of the limelight despite her fiance being named in the Sunday Times Rich List as having an estimated wealth of £74million.
The couple began dating in the early 2000s while attending Whitchurch High School in Cardiff. In March, Bale posted a tweet with a babygrow along with a tiny pair of socks and a cuddly rabbit, writing: “Baby number 3 coming soon.”
And Bale has returned her support in the wake of her father Martin RhysJones being sent to prison.
He was released early from a sixyear sentence after being jailed for a £2.1million fraud in the US last year.
A family source at the time said: “Emma’s had a bad run and there’s been a lot of upset and tears. But the new baby and the wedding will give her a lot to be happy about.”
Even after coming off the bench to secure Real Madrid’s record-breaking 13th title on Saturday, Bale’s future in Madrid is uncertain. This season he has struggled for form and fitness but managed 19 goals in 38 appearances. However, he is not popular among fans. In the past his Bentley Continental has been attacked.
Victory in Kiev handed Bale his fourth Champions League winning medal in five seasons at the club.
Speaking after the final on Saturday night Bale certainly did little to dispel the growing whispers of a move.
He said: “Obviously I need to play. That hasn’t happened this season for one reason or another... I’ll have to sit down in the summer, discuss it with my agent and take it from there.”
Gareth Bale’s career may be stratospheric after his two goals helped Real Madrid win the Champions League on Saturday in Kiev – but one woman knows how to keep his feet firmly on the ground.
The winger is due to marry childhood sweetheart and mother to his three children, Emma Rhys-Jones, 26, this summer in a ceremony so secret his family say they don’t know key details.
They are so close the player’s “love heart celebration” he usually performs after scoring a goal is dedicated to her.
This year is proving to be a huge one for Bale, 28, with his team top of Europe after their 3-1 victory over Liverpool, the birth of his third child this month and a possible return to the UK.
Given Bale is valued at an estimated £120million, few clubs in the world can afford him. But Manchester United have reportedly reignited their interest as Jose Mourinho is about to embark on a
I know people of my age go clubbing but it doesn’t interest me that much GARETH BALE ON BEING HAPPY TO STAY HOME WITH HIS YOUNG FAMILY
spending spree in summer. And as speculation increases there is also a wedding to plan.
But relatives in Cardiff admitted yesterday they don’t know when or where the ceremony will take place.
A cousin of Emma’s said: “I’ve been told nothing and neither have my parents. I hope I’m getting an invite. I didn’t watch the game but I saw he scored. I’m very happy for him.”
The cousin, who lives close to where Emma grew up in Llanishen, Cardiff, said he thought the wedding plans may have been put back after the birth of their son Axel.
He said: “I’m sure they want things to settle down first.”
It has been speculated they could marry at the medieval Vincigliata castle in Tuscany. The secret nature of his nuptials sums up the way the modest superstar shuns the limelight.
When he signed to the Spanish side from Tottenham Hotspur in September 2013 for a then-record £85.3million transfer at the Bernabeu stadium, he brought his mum Deborah, dad Frank, sister Victoria, Emma, their daughter Alba, his mother-in-law Suzanne McMurray, nieces, nephews, his brotherin-law and grandad Dennis Pike.
As usual his parents Frank, 61, and Debbie, 57, flew to Kiev to watch his heroics along with other family members. Debbie, who worked for a solicitor’s firm, and retired school caretaker Frank still live in their three£250million