In the 1980s, Ian Rush was the fiercest goal scorer in English football. Today, we’ll revisit the career of the Liverpool icon. We would also discuss Ian Rush’s net worth, his personal life, and much more.
“Salt of the earth”- that’s the perfect expression to summarise the personality of the prolific Welshman. Despite his incredible success, he always cut a modest figure in public.
The historic partnership between Kenny Dalglish and Ian Rush made Liverpool an indomitable force at both home and in Europe. Before signing off, he had scored 199 goals for the Merseyside giants.
Ian Rush’s Net Worth
| Ian Rush Net Worth 2023 | £7 million |
After retiring from football in 2000, Rush has been working as a pundit on networks. He had previously worked for ESPN. Currently, he is a part of Sky Sports’ analyst team.
Rush also had the opportunity to work for the Liverpool media team. He has worked for the club’s official channel LFC TV for a while. He also worked overseas as a pundit.
In 2014, Rush covered the inaugural season of the Indian Super League (ISL) as a pundit. He is said to make a handsome amount in exchange for his expertise as a football expert.
Rush was seen unveiling a new sports car from MG Motors in Shanghai back in 2017. He is still affiliated with the British car manufacturers and often takes part in their advertisements.
He was named the brand ambassador of forex broker CIBfx in 2017. Unfortunately, we can’t tell you anything about the financial arrangements of the deal since they were not disclosed.
He has also amassed a significant amount of wealth from his playing career. Juventus had paid £3.2m in transfer fees to secure his services in 1986. It was a hefty sum back then.
The Bianconeri also paid him £1900 on weekly salary, which was quite exorbitant as well. Napoli offered him a three-year deal, which would have seen him making £1 million over the course of his stay.
We don’t have concrete information about his earnings for other clubs, but we are sure that he warranted high salaries elsewhere too. Ian Rush’s net worth in 2023 is about £7 million.
Parents
Rush comes from a large family and his nine siblings. He was the ninth child of their parents. His father Francis Rush used to work in the steel industry. Rush’s mother Doris, was a housewife.
Francis passed away in 2003 at the age of 78. Doris breathed her last breath in 2010. She outlived her husband by four years. She was hospitalised after suffering a stroke, but she couldn’t recuperate.
Ian Rush’s Girlfriend & Wife
Rush got engaged to ex-Irish musician girlfriend Carol Anthony, 35, in 2019. Anthony has been a lifelong fan of Liverpool, and the couple is frequently seen together enjoying games at Anfield.
Reportedly, Rush had been seeing Anthony since 2010, even though he was married at that time. After the news broke, Rush and his ex-wife Tracy Rush got divorced in 2015. Carol Anthony was previously married too, and got divorced in 2012.
The couple had been married since 1987. Their eldest son Jonathan is 30 years old, and their other son Daniel is three years younger. Rush now lives in London with his fiancé.
Carol Anthony was born in 1981 and has eight elder siblings. She made her name in the Irish media as a glamour model, and later she expanded her portfolio by pursuing a career in pop music.
She took on the stage name “Havana” and recruited Simon Napier-Bell as her manager, who managed the iconic British pop duo Andrew Ridgeley and George Micheal’s Wham!
Before dipping her toe in pop music waters, she made her reality TV debut in 2012 on TV3’s Celebrity Salon. She runs her own production company Home Run Productions and has auditioned for Bollywood films in the past.
Ian Rush Liverpool Days
Rush was born in St.Asaph, Wales, which is adjacent to the England-Wales border. St.Asaph is only a one hour drive away from Liverpool. However, Rush’s football journey had begun in Chester City.
Soon, he caught the eye of Liverpool chief scout Geoff Twentyman. Twentyman was so impressed with Rush that he had convinced Liverpool to spend £300,000 to bring him to Anfield.
Again, you need to remember that it was a huge amount of money at that time. Rush grew up as an Everton fan, but when the Reds came knocking on his door, he didn’t hesitate to say yes.
Rush made his Liverpool debut in a 1980 away trip to Ipswich Town. He replaced Kenny Dalglish, his future striking partner, who was nursing an ankle injury at that time.
He failed to make an instant impact, however, and his first season in Liverpool was mostly restricted to reserve team football. His first goal for the club didn’t come until the next season.
After his maiden league goal for Liverpool, the floodgates had opened. Rush became the surprise driving force of Liverpool’s season revival after the Holiday season.
Rush scored a hattrick against Notts County in January, and he also found the net in the subsequent two games. After the season’s conclusion, Rush had 30 goals to his name in 49 appearances.
Rush’s form was instrumental in Liverpool winning the league that season. The Reds had also triumphed Tottenham Hotspur in the League Cup final. In 1983, Ian Rush was named the PFA Young Player Of The Year.
The mercurial Welshman had continued his prolific form and guided Liverpool to the league title once again. His 24-goal haul ensured the Reds finished 11 points clear of their nearest competitor in the league.
Ian Rush Vs Everton, 1982
On November 6, 1982, Rush lined up against the club he had supported in his childhood-Everton in the colours of their arch-rivals. But he was about to inflict far more pain on his boyhood favourites.
The Goodison Park crowd watched on in utter dismay as their team got hammered by the visiting Reds. The match ended 5-0 in favour of the visitors.
Rush contributed 4 goals in Liverpool’s destruction of Everton. In doing so, he became the first player in the post-war period to struck four goals in the Merseyside derby.
Leaving Liverpool FC
Liverpool suffered their first trophyless season in a decade’s time in 1984/85. The season marked one of the darkest moments in the club’s history.
Liverpool made it to the final of the European Cup in 1985. But, fan unrest in the stands led to the demise of 39 spectators. Most of the fans were Juventus supporters who were trying to flee from Liverpool hooligans.
Juventus went on to win the final 1-0, but the aftermath of the game was far-reaching than Liverpool missing out on a European trophy. It resulted in a European exile for English clubs.
In the following two seasons, the ban on English clubs remained effective. Therefore, Rush and his teammates were deprived of playing football in the highest echelon of European club football.
So, it was difficult for Rush to turn down offers coming from abroad. He had to choose between loyalty and the cream of European football. Eventually, he settled for the latter.
Ian Rush At Juventus
On July 2 1986, Ian Rush rewrote history to become the most expensive British footballer of all time. Juventus paid a hefty £3.2 million transfer fee to bring him to Turin.
However, he was loaned back to Liverpool for a season. And Rush picked up 30 goals in his farewell season with the Reds. But, he couldn’t steer them towards any trophies that season.
In 1987/88, he moved to Italy to play for his new team. But, things did not turn out as well as both parties had anticipated. Rush had a difficult time adapting in Serie A and failed to replicate his Liverpool form.
Ian Rush net worth at that time had imposed a great burden on him to perform at Juventus. The Italian giants had invested a lot in him, so the pressure was on him from the very beginning.
But, Serie A was considered as the world’s best league at that time. It was as glamorous as today’s Premier League and arguably had better competition.
Some of the world’s best defenders used to ply their trades in Italy back then. So, scoring was way more difficult in Italy, than it was in England. As a result, Rush struggled in the iconic black and white colours.
Return To Liverpool
After finishing the first season with only 8 goals in 29 appearances, Rush decided to cut his Italian adventure short and return to the place he always felt comfortable in-Liverpool.
The Reds bought back their beloved striker for £2.7 million in 1988. Liverpool were fresh off winning the league, and welcoming Ian Rush back, only added to that joy.
His second stint for Liverpool lasted longer than his first one. He played 8 more years for Liverpool, played in 245 more games, and scored 90 more goals for them.
Upon his return, he won the league once again for Liverpool (1989/90) and won two more FA Cups (88/89, 91/92) and a League Cup (94/95). He also got into PFA’s team of the year in 1991.
Overall, Rush had lifted the league five times wearing a Liverpool shirt. He won two European Cups, three FA Cups, and five League Cups with the club as well.
Ian Rush Final Days As A Footballer
After leaving Liverpool, Ian Rush joined Leeds United. He spent a season there, played 36 games, and scored 3 times. Then, he moved to Newcastle United.
He reunited with Keen Dalglish in Tyneside, but because of his poor form, he failed to nail a starting berth in the team. The club loaned him out to Sheffield United, which also proved fruitless.
He then played in Division Two for Wrexham, where he was deployed as a midfielder in some matches. He played his final matches as a professional footballer in Australia for Sydney Olympic before retiring in 2000.
Ian Rush: Wales International Career
Rush had earned 73 caps for the Wales national team, and he scored 28 goals for his country. But, he never played in a major international tournament.
Ian Rush The Manager
Rush worked briefly as a striker’s coach in Liverpool, Rush assumed the role of a full-time manager in 2004 when he was appointed by Football League Two club Chester City.
Rush had a shaky start as Chester lost 3-1 to Boston United in his first match on the charge, However, he bounced back with a two-month undefeated spell and took Chester to FA Cup third round.
In the meantime, he turned down Wales FA’s offer for the national team position. But, things started to go south for Rush from that point. After a series of disappointing results, he stepped down in 2005.
Ian Rush Autobiography
In 2008, Ian Rush’s autobiography Rush: The Autobiography came out. The book chronicles his life and provides insights into Liverpool’s eventful 80’s phase.
Final Say
Ian Rush’s net worth in 2020 signifies how successful he has been both outside and inside the pitch. The Liverpool legend continues to be an influential figure in the club to this day.
