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Aviva: Inside the 98.4m Abeking & Rasmussen flagship yacht

The owner of Aviva challenged his design team to build a yacht around a padel tennis court — and 98m, 4,966GT and a mere three years later, she was launched.

She’s big — let’s get that out of the way. At 98.4 metres,  Aviva  became the 46th longest yacht in the world when she was delivered by  Abeking & Rasmussen  in 2017, and there are very few boats of her length that can match her for volume.

Her 17.24 metre beam is so generous that the designers pulled in the bridge deck superstructure to add side decks — improving crew circulation and refining the profile — because “we just didn’t need that much beam”.

They were right: spaces on board are magnificently expansive, from guest suites the size of the master suite on a 50 metre to an owner’s wardrobe that is, designer Andrew Langton notes quite seriously, “bigger than my house in France”. The fact that scale sits fairly low down on the list of Aviva ’s extraordinary features speaks to the imagination and belief-beggaring ambition of this project.

Aviva is the third yacht of her name delivered to owner Joe Lewis, British businessman and major shareholder in Tottenham Hotspur Football Club. The first, a 62 metre Winch design, was built at Feadship in the Netherlands; the second, a 68 metre Reymond Langton design , at Abeking & Rasmussen on the banks of the Weser river in Lemwerder, near Bremen.

For his grandest project yet Lewis returned to Abeking. “They were, surprisingly, much less conservative than other people. Maybe it’s because of the military stuff they do,” says Toby Silverton, head of design on the project, working with Reymond Langton, and who was also involved in Lewis’s two previous projects.

The yard’s biggest project had been 82.48 metre Secret and to take on Aviva it extended its build shed to accommodate yachts of up to 125 metres — a bold move into a larger size category. And its courage didn’t end there.

“Build a big yacht around a padel tennis court was the main brief, I guess,” says the yard’s project manager Andreas Hering, with admirable understatement. “In three years.”

• How 74.5m Abeking & Rasmussen Elandess sprang from a blank sheet of paper

A project of this size might easily take five years, even if the yard already had a shed big enough for the purpose. And this was a highly unusual project. Design was accelerated too: the complex interior was penned in six months, when they would have liked a year; and the exterior in just one month, when it might more comfortably have taken six.

Knowing that makes Aviva ’s elegant profile even more impressive. “There was a lot of work to [visually] break up the mass, using facets,” says Langton. “We also tried to keep the lines long, so the sheer line is very long and jumps up forward with a clean line.”

They also minimised the details that act as size references, to disguise the scale. Rub rails are eliminated, stanchions replaced with glass, crew quarters windows are grouped to create long lines of glazing and even the anchor pocket has been elongated and disguised, lest a little square of gleaming stainless gives the game away.

Some upright elements of the silver superstructure were also picked out in a darker shade. “They disappear a bit, which makes the slope of the boat more raked,” says Langton.

The long bow adds to the effect, but the aesthetic is the beneficiary of a practical decision: this boat will roam far and the long covered bow makes it likely to survive the kind of rogue waves that have battered a few cruise ships over the years.

“I talked to the captain of the QE2 who went through a wave, and what happens is all the wheelhouse windows smash, they had four foot of water, you then lose all your instruments and they had no ability to control the boat, communicate or navigate,” says Silverton.

To strengthen Aviva he added extra watertight doors and armoured the two forward VIP cabins and superyacht wheelhouse so that they could be sealed off to save the boat. “You can lose everything on the bridge and you can still navigate and control the boat from the engine room,” he says.

Apart from safety, the main aim of the naval architecture was stability. Before the build of Lewis’s second Aviva , Silverton had been frustrated by a lack of data on how rolling motion affects passengers, so he put 36 people in a motion simulator for three days.

“There’s two things: one is the period of roll and the second is the way it rolls,” he says. “The typical roll period of the 62 metre would be around 7.5-7.8 seconds, one of two roll periods people were particularly upset by. And we found that if it was a soft stop and then a soft movement away again, people were much more tolerant of it.”

The design of the second boat addressed those concerns and the new Aviva ’s hull — patent pending — is an evolution of that. It has a nipped in “waist” which bulges back out below the waterline. This both slows and softens the roll. Her near-vertical bow and narrow sailing boat-like stern (which helps reduce pitching) also aid efficiency.

So much so that they were able to go down two engine sizes from the original spec (she has two MTU 16V4000 M73Ls, which put out 2,880kW each) and still hit 20.3 knots in sea trials. Silverton notes that she runs most comfortably at a zippy 16.5 knots, despite an official cruising speed of 14 knots.

Supplementary electric motors offer smooth manoeuvring and silent 11 knot running at night, while extra solidity comes from MAGLift stabilisers aft and one pair of fin stabilisers forward.

But it is the padel tennis court that lies literally and metaphorically at the heart of this project. This high intensity squash-tennis hybrid is a daily routine for Lewis and his explorations with his previous yachts had been limited to destinations with courts.

“The original idea I had was to put it on the aft end main deck and have folding panels and sliding walls,” says Langton. “It never even entered my head to put it inside, because it’s so big.”

Not only would putting the court at the back have made for a profile that Langton likens to a pick-up truck, but Silverton notes that the court would not have been playable at main-deck level. “You’re way above the roll centre, so it’s moving sideways – humans can’t cope with sideways movement of the ground,” says Silverton. “So we looked at putting it as low down as possible.”

Achieving such a large area in that position was an engineering feat but the results are spectacular. Its dimensions short-circuit spatial understanding — it seems impossible that this towering 6.65 metre tall space could be accommodated in Aviva ’s profile.

But it is, and it functions beautifully. “We’re running along at 19 knots, white horses everywhere, and they’re downstairs playing padel having no idea that there’s any sea at all,” says Silverton.

This sort of intelligent ambition has transformed every space on board into something special. “The owner has been in many businesses – hospitality, hotels – so he really understands how spaces work,” says Silverton.

Apart from strategically placed pantries and concealed crew entrances, there are three massive dumb waiters, a lower deck entrance for loading supplies, a dedicated crew galley and much more. The final GA was version 57.

On the more glamorous side of this equation, the upper saloon is a highly functional family room that’s comfortable, bright and airy. The sofas are extra squashy, and there’s a games table as well as a sculptural Bogányi piano.

The head height is 2.6 metres and nine metres of openable full-height windows run along each side of the room – with balconies. Rather than the usual glass, doors to the aft deck are leather clad, making the room feel more private. In fine weather, with those doors open, glass panels slide out to surround the aft deck dining area, creating one long, protected inside/outside space.

Designing such a huge area without pillars for support was a challenge and the corners are, says Hering, packed with extra structure. “Also, in the ceiling, all the girders are very thick because the unsupported length is just enormous.”

In contrast to this space, the main saloon below is a glamorous introduction to Aviva , up the sweeping superyacht staircase from the swim platform and inside to take in starry pieces from the owner’s art collection from a round of sunken seating. Adding a dash of intrigue there’s a secret cinema forward of the space, behind a hidden door.

The master suite is in the nose of the main deck rather than higher up, for extra stability. It stretches from a full-beam cabin to a massive bathroom centred with a monolithic Corian bathtub (there’s a spa just aft of the cabin for even more serious pampering), to a wardrobe-cum-dressing room of spectacular scale and glamour, inspired by Chanel boutiques.

But while some spaces are grand in scale, others are decidedly intimate. Rather than a dining saloon, there are two art-filled “bistros” on board for cosy meals, and many other small dining areas elsewhere. The owner’s bridge deck office is also modestly proportioned, with a conference room next door for larger meetings.

In terms of interior style, the owner’s brief was for something revolutionary. “He didn’t want anything to be symmetrical, it had to be curvy or organic,” says Langton. “He wanted it to be very different. No wood, nothing traditional.”

From the furniture and fittings to walls and overheads, there is barely a straight line on this boat. That was no mean feat for Abeking & Rasmussen’s outfitter Rodiek, which, as well as building most of the yacht’s bespoke furniture in organic forms, produced undulating wall panels from high density CNC-milled foam. “Five or ten years ago this was only used to do models or moulds for the car industry. It is very expensive,” says Langton.

It is, however, perfect for creating curves. “For this boat we decided to use a lot of new materials, even for the base materials, because of the big curved ceiling spaces,” says Hilmar Westermeyer, COO of Rodiek, who had to buy a new CNC milling machine for the project. Rodiek works only for Abeking & Rasmussen (and vice versa) in a symbiotic relationship.

In terms of the interior styling, the ethos was love it or lose it — at least visually. “This door disappears when it is closed and becomes part of the wall,” says Langton in one of the forward VIPs, swinging it to the latch, where its undulations perfectly meet those on the wall. “You either make a door a feature, make it beautiful, or you make it disappear.” The same goes for handles: those on wardrobes are invisible, but ones used on cabin doors are gnarled and textural, incorporated into a cracked bronze plate “like desert clay”.

“Because we’ve not used any wood, basically the whole interior is a mixture of leather and lacquer, it’s really almost tailored.” Take the artfully stitched cream leather of window frames, or the iridescent shot silk that runs down the broad main deck corridor, printed with a bespoke cartographical motif.

A neutral palette is enriched with precious materials: sunset-toned onyx, vanilla marble, shagreen, shimmering leathers. There are glossy panels dripping with resin and acrylic by Alex Turco in the lobby, and panels of velvet mottled with gold, by Sabina Fay Braxton, above guest beds. Staircases are works of art; one with floating treads like turbine blades, another a leather and glass form that spirals up from the floor.

This interior — where, as Langton puts it, almost every surface has “richness and form” – melts into the deck spaces via visual tricks: organic patterns in the Esthec decking that continue in the interior carpets; or the bar that is half in the main saloon and half on the aft deck, a mirror image joining the two spaces.

The superyacht sundeck is the exterior equivalent of the upper saloon — a comfortable family lounge. This massive space, with sunshine yellow upholstery, runs from a shaded central area for dining, with a projector for movie nights, to an aft sunbathing area with sunpads (with a wedge shape to sit as well as lie) and another forward around a spa pool, set low against a glass windbreak for spectacular views.

This forward end is a cosy space like so many on board. It’s that understanding of usable, enjoyable spaces, of human scale, human comfort and passions that makes Aviva a truly grand design. Those 98 metres just help pack it all on board.

First published in the April 2018 edition of BOAT International. Get this magazine sent straight to your door, or subscribe and never miss an issue.

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Joe Lewis’ $250 million superyacht, ranked among the world’s 25-most valuable, sets sail after he pays US fine

Joe Lewis’ superyacht is on the move again after spending most of the past year holed up in a Mediterranean port while the British billionaire faced insider-trading charges in the US.

His 322-foot (98-meter) Aviva — which he put up as collateral for bail —  has traveled more than 400 nautical miles from Malta to cities along Albania’s coast as well as the Greek island of Zakynthos since  he was sentenced  April 4 to three years probation, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

After departing Zakynthos earlier this week, the Tavistock Group founder’s yacht was near Kalamata in southern Greece on Thursday morning local time, the data show. It’s the most the roughly $250 million vessel has traveled in about seven months, though it’s unclear if Lewis is on board.

Lewis, 87, pledged his yacht along with his private jet to secure his release following his arrest in July. A few months later, Aviva docked until April 5 in the Maltese capital of Valletta, where it can cost as much as €750 ($800) a night to moor vessels that exceed 75 meters.

Lewis, who was scheduled to have eye surgery in London recently, was prohibited from setting foot on the yacht that has long served as part-residence, part-office while awaiting trial. He was only allowed on board after paying a $5 million fine after sentencing, which he settled soon after the verdict in Manhattan.

A representative for Lewis, who has a net worth of about $7.3 billion according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, declined to comment.

Lewis, whose global empire includes five-star hotels, private lenders and enclaves for the wealthy, launched Aviva in 2017. It includes eight guest suites, a helipad, padel tennis court, spa and a cinema. It ranked among the world’s 25-most valuable superyachts shortly after its launch, alongside those owned by Middle Eastern royals.

The yacht has also displayed works from Lewis’ private art collection, which is valued at more than $1 billion and includes pieces by Picasso, Freud, Klimt and Degas.

Events that authorities say took place on the yacht were a key piece of evidence that prosecutors used against him. 

At dinner one night in September 2019, the billionaire received favorable news about Mirati Therapeutics Inc., an oncology company where he was a major investor, leading him to pass along the tip to a host of people, including the pilots of his private jet, according to US regulators.

Those pilots — Bryan “Marty” Waugh and Patrick O’Connor — were also charged with trading on inside information. O’Connor pleaded guilty to securities fraud and conspiracy and is due to be sentenced in May, while Waugh is fighting the charges.

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This 321-Foot Superyacht Was Allegedly Used as a Secret Venue for Insider Trading, According to a Lawsuit

The securities and exchange commission claims billionaire joe lewis shared insider information while aboard the outlandish vessel., tori latham, tori latham's most recent stories.

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• Share This Article

British billionaire Joe Lewis—the owner of the Tottenham Hotspurs—has become embroiled in an insider trading case. But there’s a surprising side character in the saga: Lewis’s superyacht , Aviva .

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Brought by the U.S. government, the suit alleges that Lewis used his connections to gain access to sensitive intel. He then shared that info with his employees, friends, and lovers so they could benefit financially. At a hearing on Wednesday, Lewis pleaded not guilty; his lawyers didn’t respond to Bloomberg’s request for comment on Thursday.

In one example of such alleged activities, Lewis learned that the oncology company Mirati Therapeutics—in which he owned a stake—had received positive results for a cancer drug. According to the Securities and Exchange Commission complaint, that info was shared over Aviva ’s dining table. Lewis then told several associates to buy stock in the company, and when those shares rose following the public reveal of the cancer-drug results, Lewis’s friends and employees sold their shares for a handsome profit.

With a current net worth of $6.9 billion, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, Lewis was able to snap up Aviva in 2017. At the time, it was one of the 25 most valuable superyachts in the world , and the 51 st largest yacht. Since Lewis was charged this week, the vessel has left the Bahamas, and early Thursday it was heading away from the U.S. toward Bermuda, according to vessel data cited by Bloomberg.

For his part, Lewis can no longer board the superyacht: He used the ship and his private jet as collateral for a $300 million bail package on Wednesday. So it’s bon voyage to Aviva for now.

Tori Latham is a digital staff writer at Robb Report. She was previously a copy editor at The Atlantic, and has written for publications including The Cut and The Hollywood Reporter. When not…

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The quaint Devon town where billionaire former Spurs owner has moored his £250m superyacht all summer

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The former owner of Tottenham Hotspur FC has moored his £250 million superyacht in the middle of a town in Devon , leaving locals baffled.

Billionaire Joe Lewis, who was recently sentenced for insider trading charges in the US, has moored his giant blue superyacht in Dartmouth for weeks after arriving in the UK tourist destination at the beginning of August.

The 322-foot (98m) luxury vessel Aviva, which the 87-year-old uses partly as a residence and partly as an office, arrived from Troon, Scotland, to the Devonshire coast around 5 August.

The yacht has been pictured dominating the entire landscape of Dartmouth, overshadowing smaller yachts that are docked in the harbour next to the small seaside that lines the shore.

The scenic coastal town of Dartmouth, situated on the banks of the River Dart, has a rich maritime heritage and boasts independent locally-owned boutiques as well as beaches such as Castle Cove and Sugary Cove that attract hundreds of visitors to the small town.

The town holds an annual regatta, one of the oldest events of its kind in the country, that invites yachts, keelboats, sports boats and dinghies to the sporting event held in its port. This year’s event took place on 29 to 31 August while Lewis’ yacht was also moored in the area.

The giant yacht is hard to miss, leaving some residents perplexed as to why such a huge boat would want to be moored in a small English town that does not offer the same tropical weather that most superyachts are spotted in .

“I love this town and I wouldn’t want to do it down but why does a billionaire want to stay here for the whole of August instead of the Caribbean or the Med?” one lifelong resident told The Sun .

"It’s just a huge floating gin palace, miles bigger than anything else in the harbour. We’ve seen his crew come and go in a tender but I don’t know if he’s even onboard – nobody’s heard anything,” they added.

It is unclear if Lewis is present on the superyacht while it is being anchored in Devon .

Aviva was built in 2017, can host 16 guests, 25 crew members, and also features an indoor padel tennis court, according to SuperYachtFan .

The superyacht had not been spotted around British waters until recently, as Aviva, along with the owner’s private jet, was put up as collateral for bail after the British billionaire’s arrest in July 2023 for insider trading charges in the US.

Lewis was not allowed to set foot on the vessel until he paid a $5m fine after his sentencing in April for sharing business secrets with friends, which also includes three years of prison.

After leaving its base in Malta following the sentencing, Aviva set sail to cities along Albania’s coast as well as the Greek island Zakynthos and Kalamata in southern Greece, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

Along with the padel tennis court, the yacht also includes a helipad, spa and a cinema, and was ranked among the world’s 25-most valuable superyachts shortly after its launch, the outlet added.

Aviva is also home to one of the most expensive art collections in the world, with original works by Picasso and Matisse aboard the yacht.

Lewis made his fortune primarily in foreign exchange and investment before buying Tottenham Hotspur in 1991. He is ranked 38th among the UK’s wealthiest people, according to the Sunday Times Rich List , with a net worth of £5.3bn.

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Joe Lewis’ $250 Million Yacht Sets Sail After He Pays US Fine

By Ben Stupples and Ava Benny-Morrison

Joe Lewis ’ superyacht is on the move again after spending most of the past year holed up in a Mediterranean port while the British billionaire faced insider-trading charges in the US.

His 322-foot (98-meter) Aviva — which he put up as collateral for bail — has traveled more than 400 nautical miles from Malta to cities along Albania’s coast as well as the Greek island of Zakynthos since he was sentenced April 4 to three years probation, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

After departing Zakynthos earlier this week, the Tavistock Group founder’s yacht was near Kalamata in ...

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Billionaire ex-Tottenham owner's massive superyacht labelled an 'eyesore' by Dartmouth residents

The colossal 322ft Aviva, owned by former Spurs owner Joe Lewis, has been anchored in the picturesque town since early August

• 08:39, 2 SEP 2024

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Locals have branded a superyacht owned by billionaire former Spurs owner Joe Lewis an "absolute eyesore" after it moored in their Devon town a month ago.

The massive £250 million, 322ft Aviva, which serves as the magnate's floating home and office complete with a full-size padel tennis court, has been anchored off Dartmouth since early August. The vessel embarked from Troon, Scotland, docking around August 5.

It was one of its few UK appearances since being detained by US courts for over a year while Mr Lewis was embroiled in "brazen" insider trading allegations. The 87-year-old avoided prison time, due to poor health, but was handed a £3.8million fine and a three-year probation period, the Express reports.

• Plans for new 8,000-home Devon town to go on show
• Sports pitch moved to make way for major Devon relief road

Yet, the yacht's prolonged presence has irked some Dartmouth locals, with Michael Rowland condemning the yacht as "an absolute eyesore" and Geraldine Wood criticising it as "totally out of place in beautiful Dartmouth".

A local told The Sun : "I love this town and I wouldn't want to do it down but why does a billionaire want to stay here for the whole of August instead of the Caribbean or the Med? It's been raining constantly for the last few weeks. I guess he's here for the regatta that starts this week but who knows how long he'll stay.

"It's just a huge floating gin palace, miles bigger than anything else in the harbour. We've seen his crew come and go in a tender but I don't know if he's even onboard - nobody's heard anything."

The Aviva was built in 2017 and can sleep 16 people, with a top speed of 20 knots and an environmentally friendly hybrid electric propulsion system. Last month, t he vessel was spotted alongside two other superyachts, the Elysian and the Constance , on the river Dart.

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Tottenham hotspur owner joe lewis posts $300m bond with help of superyacht, private plane in insider trading case.

That’s a boatload of money.

British Billionaire and Tottenham Hotspur soccer club owner Joe Lewis is putting up his superyacht and private plane to secure a $300 million bond so he can walk free after he was arrested on insider trading charges .

Lewis, 86, surrendered to federal authorities in New York on Wednesday morning on charges he gave inside information to a slew of people in his life — including romantic partners, friends, personal assistants and even private pilots — who made millions by using his tips on the stock market.

Lewis later appeared in Manhattan federal court wearing a grey suit, white shirt and black tie and told the judge he pleaded “not guilty.”

He was released on a $300 million bond that will be secured by his yacht, called “AVIVA,” and his personal plane.

AVIVA is a $250 million superyacht that was built in 2017 and is one of the largest yachts in the world at 322 feet in length, according to Yachtbible.com .

Lewis must keep the FBI abreast of the movements of his yacht, and he is only allowed to use his plane to travel to court appearances, according to the agreed-upon bail conditions.

The soccer club owner — who is worth $6.1 billion, according to Forbes — cannot go abroad and his US travel is limited to parts of New York and Florida.

Lewis, who founded the investment firm Tavistock Group, was hit with a 19-count indictment on charges of securities fraud and conspiracy.

The feds say that from 2019 through 2021 Lewis shared confidential intel about companies including Mirati Therapeutics, Solid Biosciences and Australian Agricultural Co.

He also allegedly conspired to defraud Mirati, the US Securities and Exchange Commission and investors from 2013 through 2018 by hiding his over 20% stake in Mirati — a cancer therapy company, according to the indictment.

The billionaire then lent his own money so that people could invest the cash based on his tips — including in October 2019 when Lewis wired $1 million to two pilots so they could buy shares of Mirati, prosecutors claim.

“Boss lent Marty and I $500,000 each for this,” the indictment alleges one of the pilots said in a text to a friend.

The aviator went on to say, “the Boss has inside info” because “otherwise why would he make us invest,” the court papers allege.

The two pilots paid the money back after the stock spiked by 16.7% when Mirati announced a successful clinical trial, prosecutors claim.

“The government has made an egregious error in judgment in charging Mr. Lewis, an 86-year-old man of impeccable integrity and prodigious accomplishment,” defense attorney David Zornow said in a statement Wednesday.

“Mr. Lewis has come to the US voluntarily to answer these ill-conceived charges, and we will defend him vigorously in court.”

The pilots, Patrick O’Connor and Bryan Waugh, were also charged in the case. They pleaded not guilty at the Wednesday arraignment and were each released on a $250,000 bond.

Attorneys for Waugh didn’t return requests for comment Wednesday. O’Connor’s lawyers declined to comment.

Lewis is due back in court on Sept. 5.

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The first yacht to house a  full-sized 

Padel tennis court.

98M SUPERYACHT- 'AVIVA' 

Joe Lewis, the British billionaire, Chairman of Tavistock Group and the 5th richest man in the UK, commissioned this stunning superyacht which was launched in January 2017. She is believed to be valued at US$250 million! That’s £204,225,000.00 GBP!  

When Joe’s not at his home in the Bahamas, where Tavistock Group is based, he will be enjoying the luxury on board this 98-metre (322 ft) vessel. He says it’s his ‘home away from home’ and spends much of the year on board, using it as a floating office, wherever in the world it might be. 

At the time, Aviva was the largest creation designed by Reymond Langton. It was built by Abeking & Rasmussen who had to create a special system and pontoon in order to launch the super structure, 33 months after signing the contract. 

Her hybrid drive system is a special feature whereby using just electric power, and not the main engines, she can cruise at 11 knots. With an eco-friendly system that requires less engine output and reduced fuel consumption, she can reach a max speed of 20 knots. 

She sleeps 16 guests in 8 cabins and accommodates a crew of 25 over 12 cabins. 

TENNIS COURT

  Although you won’t see Aviva in the first half of the ‘top 100 largest yachts in the world’, she is the first yacht to house a full-sized padel tennis court. The indoor court stretches across a 10 metre width, 20 metre length, and 6.65 metre height. It’s hard to imagine a space like this inside any type of yacht, but with her 5000 gross tonnage of interior volume, the size of the court didn’t have to be compromised. 

 Joe plays the sport with his guests or his crew members, who are also encouraged to use the ‘sports hall’ for football and other exercise activities when the net is removed. Not only that, but there is a small lounging area for spectators, hidden behind a protective net. 

Aviva’s tenders are launched through her side doors, and she also boasts a ‘beach club’ area created by a swimming platform that opens up onto the ocean.  

This year Forbes valued Joe Lewis at £4.358 Billion

  The 82-year-old owner has an impressive portfolio after starting his career at the age of 15, joining his father’s catering company in London. He made his initial wealth from the sale of that company in 1979, then switched his residency to the Bahamas and moved into currency trading. He now has investments in over 200 businesses and is a Tottenham Hotspur FC major shareholder.  

FOURTH YACHT

  Prior to his 98-meter flagship, Joe owned 3 other yachts. His first was a 62-meter Feadship in 1998, called Lady Aviva. However, this caught fire later, in the Red Sea, and was eventually salvaged by Dennis Washington, who transformed the yacht, renaming her Attessa III. Joe’s second yacht was the 60-meter Oceanco, named Alfa Four, which was built in 2004. She is now known as Sea Pearl. In 2007, Joe took delivery of a 68-meter Aviva, also built by Abeking & Rasmussen. 

Joe must like his toys as we are also aware that he owns a private jet worth US$30 million (£24,504,600.00 GBP). The Embraer Legacy 600, which seats 12 passengers, has a registration that refers to Tottenham Hotspurs FC and reads; ‘G-THFC’. 

 Aviva was recently moored at Keppel Bay in Singapore, where we managed to get a few shots of her in all her glory! 

The blue innovative steel hull design really stands out in the crowd.  

  For more Motor Yacht News, click the link below.

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AVIVA Yacht – Unique $250 M Superyacht

Delivered in 2017, the AVIVA superyacht is a striking sight with its length of 98.4 meters (322.83 ft), ranking it high on the list of largest yachts worldwide .

Built by the renowned German shipyard Abeking & Rasmussen, AVIVA has been a standout in the world of luxury yachts since its inception, winning the Motor Yacht of the Year award at the World Superyacht Awards in 2018.

AVIVA Yacht

Mr. Lewis started his early entrepreneurial life by currency trading, enabling him to have a more thorough insight into the business world.

Making him one of the wealthiest people on the earth with an accumulated net worth of over 4.5 billion pounds; enabled him to buy many luxury cars and Aviva yacht, the 250-million-dollar beast.

AVIVA was built by the boat building company Abeking & Rasmussen , situated in Lower Saxony. Abeking & Rasmussen is a company aimed at engineering yachts, naval vessels, and cruise ships.

They were also responsible for building AVIVA’s sisters Elandess , Cloudbreak, and Excellence.

Reymond Langton Design was responsible for designing this gorgeous yacht. They are an award-winning company that prides itself on its creativity and passion with well over a decade of experience in the superyacht designing industry.

They were also responsible for creating the Serene superyacht and Nobiskrug yacht  Mogambo.

AVIVA Yacht Exterior

AVIVA’s exterior displays a sleek and modern all-blue design, distinctive among today’s superyachts. Notable outdoor facilities include a Jacuzzi, a large swimming pool, a helipad, and a spacious sundeck for relaxation and entertainment.

The yacht also boasts a collection of water toys, including jet skis, sea bobs, and inflatable slides for guests to enjoy.

AVIVA Yacht Interior

Designed by Reymond Langton Design in collaboration with Toby Silverton, AVIVA’s interior offers a contemporary and luxurious aesthetic. The yacht can accommodate up to 16 guests in eight state-of-the-art suites, complemented by a crew of 35.

The owner’s suite, located on the upper deck, features an office, private lounge, and a large en suite bathroom. The remaining guest cabins, consisting of two VIP suites and five double cabins, can be found on the main deck, each outfitted with en suite facilities.

AVIVA’s standout feature is a full-size padel tennis court, located in the lower deck. The yacht also features a beach club, a spa, a gym, a swimming pool, and an elevator connecting all the decks.

Similar to her sister yachts, she is also made of steel and has a solid superstructure made out of aluminum.

Powering this 98-meter-long superyacht are twin diesel-electric MTU engines capable of outputting 3,862 horsepower.

Along with her 364,705-litre fuel tanks, she can run comfortably at a speed of 14 knots and reach a max speed of 20 knots.

AVIVA can now comfortably accommodate 16 guests and carry up to 35 crew members after being refitted twice since its launch.

AVIVA Yacht Price

The estimated cost of AVIVA was around US $150 million. The annual running costs are estimated to be between US $12 to 15 million, based on usage.

AVIVA is not currently for sale or available for charter.

AVIVA yacht in Gibraltar

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Billionaire ex-Premier League owner’s £250m superyacht has ‘taken over’ our town for WEEKS – it’s ‘totally out of place’

• Stephen Moyes
• Ryan Merrifield
• Published : 9:17 ET, Sep 1 2024
• Updated : 16:13 ET, Sep 1 2024

A SUPERYACHT owned by billionaire former Spurs owner Joe Lewis has been branded an eyesore by locals after it was moored in a Devon town for almost a month.

The £250 million, 322ft luxury yacht 'Aviva' - which acts as the reclusive billionaire’s floating home and office and features a full-size padel tennis court - has been moored in Dartmouth since the start of August.

It arrived from Troon, Scotland , around August 5 - one of the first times the floating palace has been in UK waters since it was held as collateral by US courts for over a year while British tycoon Lewis faced charges of “brazen” insider trading.

In April, the 87-year-old was spared jail due to his ailing health but was fined $5million (£3.8m) and sentenced to three years probation.

But the ongoing presence of the yacht has upset some in the town with Michael Rowland branding the boat “an absolute eyesore” and Geraldine Wood arguing it was “totally out of place in beautiful Dartmouth”.

Another lifelong resident told The Sun: “I love this town and I wouldn’t want to do it down but why does a billionaire want to stay here for the whole of August instead of the Caribbean or the Med?

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"The weather is crap, it's been raining constantly for the last few weeks.

"I guess he’s here for the regatta that starts this week but who knows how long he’ll stay.

"It’s just a huge floating gin palace, miles bigger than anything else in the harbour. We’ve seen his crew come and go in a tender but I don’t know if he’s even onboard - nobody’s heard anything."

Aviva was built in 2017 and has a capacity of 16 with a top speed of 20 knots and an eco-friendly hybrid electric propulsion system.

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Lewis started out working for his father’s catering business in London before selling up and moving to the Bahamas to live as a tax exile.

He started currency trading in the 1980s and made a fortune betting against the pound in the 1992 crash dubbed Black Wednesday.

According to the 2023 Sunday Times Rich List, the East End-born, twice-married tycoon has an estimated fortune of £5.1billion.

He reportedly has an art collection worth £1 billion.

He bought Premier League giants Tottenham Hotspur in 1991, and the club was transferred to the Lewis Family Trust in 2022.

JOE LEWIS' LUXURY YACHT AVIVA

Joe Lewis rarely attended Tottenham Hotspur matches despite being owner for 30 years.

A tax exile since his days as a currency trader in the 1980s, he prefers life on his superyacht in the Caribbean.

Lewis' vessel - which measures 98 metres or 322ft - is the fourth yacht named Aviva built specifically for him.

It replaced the 68m Aviva III, with both designed by Reymond Langton and built by Lemwerder-based German builder Abeking & Rasmussen.

The hull was built at Flensburger Schiffbau-Gesellschaft and launched in 2015.

Aviva acts as Lewis' floating office and home, and features an indoor, full-sized padel tennis court.

In May 2013, Spurs went on a trip to the Bahamas and were welcomed on board the vessel by host Joe.

Michael Dawson, who was the club captain at the time, said: "I had never met him before, so it was nice to go over there and a great experience.

“What a really nice guy. And that yacht is unreal! But he’s just a normal guy.

"You could chat to him about anything. He tunes into all the games , he loves it.

"We just sat there chatting. He made us feel so welcome over there. It was relaxed. A lot of team bonding together.

"It helps to be able to put a face to the person investing so much in this club he wants to be successful.

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"He’s always watching. He knows what goes on. He would remember every game, every little thing."

The Sun has contacted Lewis' company Tavistock for comment.

WHO IS JOE LEWIS?

Joe Lewis is a billionaire British businessman and investor, best known for being the majority owner of Premier League football club Tottenham Hotspur between 1991 and 2022.

He was born on February 5 1937 and lived above a pub with his family in Bow, East London.

Lewis left school at 15 to help run his father's West End catering firm, Tavistock Banqueting.

He went on to takeover the business and expand it before selling up in 1979 to make his initial wealth.

The entrepreneur moved into currency trading in the 1980s and 1990s, during which time he moved to the Bahamas as a tax exile.

In 1992, Lewis made a fortune betting against the pound prior to the Black Wednesday crash.

The previous year he had taken ownership of Spurs.

He remains the main investor of Tavistock Group, which owns more than 200 companies worldwide.

Lewis is also the largest shareholder in pub group Mitchells & Butlers via his investment vehicle Piedmont, and was previously majority owner of ENIC Group.

In July 2023 the US attorney for the Southern District of New York charged him with multiple counts of insider trading.

He pleaded guilty in January this year but in April was spared jail and instead sentenced to probation and fined $5 million (£3.8m).

According to the 2023 Sunday Times Rich List, he has an estimated fortune of a whopping £5.1billion.

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Billionaire Joe Lewis, who was forbidden to use his $250 million superyacht for close to a year, can finally use his dream boat after paying a $5 million fine. Used as his residence and office the 322 feet long stunning vessel is built around a padel court.

Not his first yacht, but Aviva is the first with a paddle court –

Abeking & Rasmussen had delivered Lewis’s first 223-foot Aviva yacht for the yacht-enthusiast billionaire. Spending months on end on his pleasure craft for business and pleasure, Lewis returned to the shipyard with a ballooning net worth and interests, commissioning a boat that would essentially function as his primary home.

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Built by more than 4,000 people in 4 years, Azzam is the largest superyacht in the world. The $600 million vessel is as fast as a navy frigate and burns 13 tons of fuel every 60 mins. Owned by the Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi it is so massive you can practice golf inside it.

Jeff Bezos, the world’s third-richest man, has expanded his real estate portfolio by buying a $68 million mansion on Florida’s ‘Billionaire Bunker.’ The stunning three-bedroom property sits on a 2.8-acre man-made barrier island.

Elon Musk took his $70 million private jet to watch the Qatar World cup final – His single trip to Doha emitted 186,000 pounds of co2 into the atmosphere. It will take an Oakwood tree 3,895 years to absorb it all.

His barber flies from London to give him a $20,000 haircut – The ridiculously luxurious life of the Sultan of Brunei that makes oligarchs look poor – His 1,700 room palace dwarfs the Buckingham palace, he flies in a gold plated Boeing 747 and has a fleet of 7,000 cars.

Along with his $1.3 billion megayachts Eclipse and Solaris, Roman Abramovich owned a rather modest $40 million superyacht. Incidentally, he passed the ownership of the 165-ft long vessel to his close friend exactly on the day Russia invaded Ukraine.

How much does it cost to load up the refrigerator of this American sports billionaire’s superyacht? Enough to buy a Porsche 911.

Superyacht linked to sanctioned Russian weapons billionaire is on sale for $29.5 million – Kept hidden with its transponders switched off for 4 months, the 167 feet long vessel has a helipad, jacuzzi and a whirlpool bath.

A British billionaire's giant yacht is anchored near Fort Lee

Jill Bobrow likes big boats. As an editor at large for Yachts International magazine, she has toured some of the largest yachts in the world, including the Jubilee, a 330-foot, $300-million mega-yacht complete with a big-screen cinema and on-board helicopter hangar.

“Cinemas are becoming de rigeur on yachts of this size,” said Bobrow, who has attended the Monaco Yacht Show each of the last 25 years.

Despite all her experience, sometimes a really big yacht still catches Bobrow by surprise. This happened last Friday, as Bobrow was riding a northbound train from Manhattan. Out the window she spotted a massive boat, a true leviathan, sitting in the oddest location: in the Hudson River, north of the George Washington Bridge, just a few dozen yards from the New Jersey shore.

“I said, ‘Oh my God, that was a really huge yacht,’” Bobrow said. “Seeing something that big in a place like that, it definitely caught my eye.”

Story continues below gallery.

It’s true, the borough of Fort Lee, New Jersey, is not a common destination for mega-yachts or the mega-rich who buy them. Yet for at least the last 10 days, the borough played the role of unwitting host to the Aviva, a 322-foot yacht built as a floating office building and gymnasium for Joe Lewis, a British investor with an estimated net worth of $5.1 billion, according to Forbes magazine. (By June 5, the Aviva had sailed to its next, unknown destination.)

Chief among the Aviva’s many superlatives: A secret cinema located behind a hidden door and a full-sized, indoor paddle tennis court.

“It’s the first time I’ve ever heard of a paddle tennis court on a yacht,” said Bobrow, whose magazine this year rated the Aviva as the 50th largest yacht in the world. “It’s staggering.”

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Viewed from the shoreline in Palisades Interstate Park on Thursday, the Aviva seemed less than staggering. Maybe it was the rain, which spittled from the sky, or the location, so close to New York City, where the skyline itself functions as a jewel box of ostentatious wealth. Everyone who saw it was surprised to find this giant yacht sitting here, displacing 5,000 tons of gray Hudson River water.

None were impressed.

“When I saw it I was like, ‘Boy, who would dock a thing like that here?’” said Khristine Botezan, 46, who grew up in Teaneck and now lives in Orlando, Florida. “A paddle tennis court? A hidden cinema? That’s not something I’m interested in getting invited to.”

“My first thought is I wouldn’t want to be the one who has to clean it,” said Tim Platt, who was visiting the park from Brooklyn.

Thursday’s onlookers may be alone in their disdain. Everywhere else the Aviva docks, it seems to cause a sensation. The yacht’s arrival last May off the coast of Cornwall, in southwestern England, was documented in a story and photo gallery in the UK’s Daily Mail; earlier this  month, it moored at the city marina in downtown Charleston, South Carolina, attracting reporters from the city’s daily paper and alternative news weekly.   

“For people in New Jersey to see a boat like this off our coast, it’s an unusual thing,” said Kim Kavin, a contributing editor with Yachting magazine and Yachts International who lives in Long Valley, Morris County. “Go check it out. It’s awe-inspiring when you see them.”

A tennis court in the middle of the ocean

Seen from Ross Dock, along the shore in Palisades Interstate Park, the Aviva certainly is imposing. The typical yacht resembles a baroque layer cake with a pointy white nose. The Aviva’s superstructure was designed with streamlined balconies and tinted windows arranged in long, unbroken lines to disguise its massive girth, according to statements by Abeking & Rasmussen, the German boatyard that built it.

All those white balconies and decks are offset by the Aviva’s gray-blue bow, which drops in a straight line to the water, giving it the face of a bulldog.

“It looks very powerful,” Bobrow said.

The look is backed up by two diesel engines capable of generating a combined 7,724 horsepower. That’s enough power to push the Aviva to a top speed of 23 knots, or about 26 miles an hour.

And with its specially designed hull, which flares like a bulbous waist at the waterline, the Aviva is remarkably stable. To nail the shape, Toby Silverton, the Aviva’s lead designer, paid 36 people to spend three days in a motion simulator, recreating the rolling waves created by gales and tropical depressions.

The result is a boat stable enough for its billionaire owner to play a game of paddle tennis in the middle of the ocean.

“We’re running along at 19 knots,” Silverton told Boat magazine this year, “and they’re downstairs playing having no idea that there’s any sea at all.”

For his part, Lewis takes a broader view of his big toy’s capabilities. He built his father’s catering business into the Tavistock Group, which invests in a range of industries including real estate, oil and gas and the Tottenham Hotspur soccer team.

In addition to an indoor tennis court, Lewis demanded that his yacht be comfortable, and remain in constant communication with his business empire

“Aviva is more than an office,” he told a blogger with Bond Technology Management a few years ago, before the latest Aviva — his third and biggest yacht with the same name — was delivered. “It is also my home for much of the year. So for me, it is relaxing working from home, wherever Aviva may be in the world.”

Lewis's company and the yacht's manufacturer did not respond to calls and emails seeking comment.

Riding north from Manhattan, Bobrow’s train was moving too quickly for her to get a good look at the Aviva, she said. Unlike the people of Fort Lee, who barely seemed to notice one of the world’s most technologically advanced yachts lollygagging at their doorstep, Bobrow hopes to see it up-close someday, maybe even get a tour.

“I go where there are yachts,” she said.

In the meantime, she seems quite content to have missed the Aviva for a train ride home.

“I live in beautiful Vermont,” Bobrow said, “where I have a kayak.”

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Tottenham billionaire Joe Lewis lives on a £195m yacht, owns £1bn of fine art and is best mates with golfer Tiger Woods

• Published : 21:32, 4 Apr 2024
• Updated : 21:38, 4 Apr 2024
• Published : Invalid Date,

JOE LEWIS was the Tottenham owner very rarely seen.

And he will surely keep an even lower profile after being sentenced for insider trading and conspiracy charges.

The East End-born self-made billionaire rarely visited the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium during his tenure, officially passing over control to his family in 2022 .

Instead and somewhat unsurprisingly, he preferred life on a superyacht in the Caribbean to trips to North London.

Residing mostly in the Bahamas on his £195million boat called Aviva III , he also has a home next door to Sean Connery's former estate and is friends with Tiger Woods .

Over the years, he launched the careers of Planet Hollywood and Hard Rock founder Robert Earl and 70s pop sensations The Nolans.

And according to the 2023 Sunday Times Rich List, he has an estimated fortune of a whopping £5.1billion.

But now the money-man is hitting the headlines for the wrong reasons following his New York court sentencing.

Lewis pleaded guilty in January after tipping off his girlfriend, private pilots and family and friends in his inner circle.

Those tips enabled Lewis' associates to reap millions of dollars in profit, prosecutors said.

However, he avoided jail time for his crimes as a federal judge agreed to sentence him to a $5m (£4m) fine and three years' probation.

Let SunSport take you through the world of the man nicknamed "The Boxer" because of his sporting namesake.

Who is Joe Lewis?

Joe is true cockney who was born within the sound of the St. Mary-le-Bow church bells in 1937. He is thought to have been raised in a flat above the Roman Arms pub in East London.

He left school at 15 to work in his family's cafe as a waiter, earning £6 a week.

He later established more businesses in London's West End under the name Tavistock Banqueting.

Joe opened restaurants including the Northumberland Grand, which was the first fancy dress-themed eaterie in London aimed at tourists.

From there he developed the Beefeater, the Cockney, the Caledonian and the Hanover Grand.

He managed his first super club called The Talk of the Town in the 60s, where the likes of Frank Sinatra, Diana Ross and Tom Jones performed.

At the Hanover Grand, Joe granted The Nolans their first-ever live show and he gave Planet Hollywood and Hard Rock founder Robert Earl his first job.

Joe even delved into the world of tourist shops, selling souvenirs and laying on bus tours of London for foreigners and dropping them off at his restaurants.

He sold the business in 1979 for an incredible £30m and moved to the Bahamas as a tax exile.

How he turned his millions to billions... 

After moving to Nassau, the capital of the Bahamas, Joe entered the world of currency trading.

It's there he made tens of millions, gambling on stock, as he looked to continue accumulating his massive wealth.

And it was in September 1992 when he became a billionaire, thanks in part to one shrewd investment on a day called Black Wednesday.

Joe teamed up with investor George Soros believing the pound was overvalued and would collapse as Britain attempted to align it with other Euro countries.

He bet on the pound crashing out of the European Exchange Rate Mechanism and as it did he became a billionaire overnight.

Joe repeated the trick many years later betting against the Mexican peso and landed himself even more dough.

He lives on one of the most luxurious boats in the world...

Well, for most months of the year... and it's not just any old boat.

The Aviva III, built in 2007, is Joe's mobile private office and it's 223ft in size with an estimated value of £195m.

It was crafted by German builders Abeking and Rasmussen and designed by Reymond Langton.

The large yacht can host up to 16 people and in sea trials reached up to 20 knots (23mph).

Joe is a keen sportsman , with the ship boasting a full-sized tennis court.

In May 2013, Spurs went on a trip to the Bahamas and were welcomed on board the vessel by host Joe.

Michael Dawson, who was the club captain at the time, said: "I had never met him before, so it was nice to go over there and a great experience.

“What a really nice guy. And that yacht is unreal! But he’s just a normal guy.

"You could chat to him about anything. He tunes into all the games, he loves it.

"We just sat there chatting. He made us feel so welcome over there. It was relaxed. A lot of team bonding together.

"It helps to be able to put a face to the person investing so much in this club he wants to be successful.

"He’s always watching. He knows what goes on. He would remember every game, every little thing."

Joe has friends in high places...

Of course, when you're as wealthy as Joe you're going to attract the creme de la creme of society.

His best mate is Tiger Woods, who has called Joe "my business mentor" in the past.

Each year, when he wasn't injured, Tiger took part in Joe's Tavistock Cup competition in Florida.

It was held on two of Joe's developments in Orlando called the Isleworth and Lake Nona.

Incidentally, when Tiger Woods had his infamous 2009 low-speed car accident it was at Joe's Isleworth complex, where the golfer has a home.

Joe, who also owns property in Argentina and Bulgaria, boasts Ernie Els as another pal, and the pair are said to regularly dine together.

Being mates with golfers gives you the hint that Joe is a keen golfer himself.

He is believed to play off a 14 handicap and has practised with Woods and Els in the past.

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He has an epic art collection....

When you're a wealthy man, you need hobbies aside from golf and relaxing on yachts.

That's why Joe has an art collection that's the envy of every Premier League owner.

Said to be worth around £1bn, he owns works by post-expressionists Picasso, Chagall, Matisse, and Miros.

However, in 2008 Joe made headline news, at least in the art world, with one extravagant purchase.

The businessman splashed £26.3million on Francis Bacon's Triptych 1974-1977 painting .

And you'd never guess where he keeps all his art? Yeah, that's right.. the paintings adorn the walls of his mega yacht.

And now for something personal...

Joe has been married twice, his first wife was Esther Browne who he met at his greasy spoon.

She now lives in Ireland.

They had two children, Vivienne and Charlie, before they divorced.

Joe then married his former assistant Jane, however they don't have any kids.

But before you go thinking life has been all rosy for Joe, he has been touched by loss.

He lost his dad to cancer, so he wanted to give something back.

Joe set up a foundation to help fund research, and the charity is run by daughter Vivienne.

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