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Tottenham Hotspur's owner Joe Lewis has climbed up the list of the world's richest men according to the new Forbes 2017 Rich List released this week.

The 80-year-old, who lives in the Bahamas, controls Spurs' owning company ENIC International Ltd alongside chairman Daniel Levy and the new list revealed that his estimated personal fortune is now £4.5 billion ($5.6b), up £240m from last year. That compares to a £2.4 billion fortune back in 2008.

Lewis, who was born above a pub in London's East End, is the fifth richest man in the UK and 269th in the world. He helped his family build a catering business before selling it off and becoming a currency trader.

Spurs are thriving on and off the pitch, with a state-of-the-art training facility at Hotspur Way and a new £800m stadium being constructed alongside White Hart Lane. However, Lewis has plenty of interests across the Atlantic as well.

His Forbes entry states: "Joe Lewis continues to expand his vision for his Lake Nona development near Orlando, one of the fastest growing communities in the USA. In January 2017, the U.S. Tennis Association opened its new $63 million campus, with 100 courts and a dormitory, on the site.

"That same month accounting firm KPMG announced a new $430 million training and conference center to be built at Lake Nona. Major League Soccer's Orlando City SC is building a new 23-acre training facility at Lake Nona, set to be complete in March 2017.

"His Tavistock investment firm paid $165 million in December 2016 for the Hyatt Regency Pier Sixty-Six in Fort Lauderdale. Lewis also owns London Premier League soccer team Tottenham Hotspur and has a stake in UK's largest pub operator, Mitchell's & Butlers plc, and a variety of other investments including luxury club resort Albany, restaurants, hotels, and even an Australian agriculture firm."

However, there is certainly more money down the road at Spurs' local rivals Arsenal. The Gunners' minority shareholder Alisher Usmanov, who owns just over 30 per cent of the club, is valued at £12.3 billion - that has risen £2.4 billion since last year.

Majority owner Sten Kroenke, who controls 66.64 per cent of the club - has a wealth of just over £6 billion.

Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich, whose assets are valued at a shade under £7.4 billion in Forbes’ 2017 list.