Gareth Bale stuns fans as he turns up at popular pub

Welsh football icon Gareth Bale surprised patrons by showing up at a well-known bar in Cardiff city centre last weekend, where he was more than happy to snap photos with the locals.

The ex-Wales International star dropped by Temple Bar on High Street on Sunday, May 19, and later visited his own establishment, Elevens, on Castle Street. Having hung up his boots in January 2023 following his World Cup appearance with Wales in Qatar in 2022, Bale has been keeping busy.

He has been taking part in a number of golf events and relishing in quality time with his family, who live in LA. However, he's recently returned to Welsh soil, where he also owns a property in the Vale of Glamorgan, reports Wales Online.

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Despite his global fame, Bale made a point of returning to his roots during his time in Cardiff, frequenting some of the city's popular pubs. Karl Kruger Williams, the manager of Temple Bar, took to X, formerly known as Twitter, to post a photo of Gareth with the caption: "Who's in the house , Temple bar."

Temple Bar is no stranger to celebrity visits, particularly from rugby stars, who are often seen there enjoying a drink. Just earlier this year, friends Gethin Jones and Jamie Roberts were caught on camera having a Guinness at the bar before the Wales vs Scotland match in the Six Nations.

Gareth made sure to drop by the Irish-themed Temple Bar, but he also visited Elevens Bar and Grill, where some fortunate patrons managed to snap a photo with him. The sports bar, which opened its doors in May 2017 through a partnership with Brains Brewery, took over the former Dempsey's pub.

Decked out with an array of sporting memorabilia spanning football, rugby, basketball, and golf, and boasting enough TV screens for all to catch the live action, the venue has quickly become a favourite haunt for sports enthusiasts. The ex-footballer is also involved in a mini-golf bar, Par95, in the city centre. Launched in 2022 in partnership with Depot, the venue is based at St Mary Street.

In a 2020 interview about his foray into the hospitality sector, the Welsh icon said: "I'm not going to be playing football forever so we are interested in doing these kind of things, especially in Wales as we want to give back to the city I was born in and we want to grow Cardiff as much as we can."

"By putting Elevens [the city centre sports bar he already owns in partnership with Brains] and Par 59 there we are adding to the city, hopefully we are expanding it and making it more exciting for youngsters and people in general to do different things and have fun. If there are other opportunities we feel we would like to pursue then we will keep growing as a business and do other things."