Matthew McConaughey Wore Flip-Flops at a Club When He First Met Wife Camila — and That Won Her Over (Exclusive)

Mar. 15, 2025

Camila and Matthew McConaughey in 2008.Photo:Steve Granitz/WireImage

Steve Granitz/WireImage

Sandals in the club are alright, alright, alright, according toCamila Alves McConaughey.The businesswoman andMatthew McConaughey, who recently celebratedthe first anniversaryof theirPantalones Organic Tequila, have been open about theirtequila-fueled meet cuteback in 2006.“Out of the corner of my eye, this sort of aqua-green figure went floating across the frame about 20 feet in front of me,” Matthew told PEOPLE in 2016. “My eye went up and I remember what came out of my mouth. I didn’t say, ‘Who is that?’ I went, ‘What is that?’“Camila’s memory from that night is a bit different. “The first time I saw him at the bar, he was trying to get the bartender to make these drinks,” the mother of three tells PEOPLE more recently at aPantalonesevent on Oct. 24.Matthew McConaughey in flip-flops.Raymond Hall/GC“Coachingthe bartender to make the margarita,” theTrue Detectivestar, 54, corrects her with a laugh.Camila, 41, continues: “All I kept hearing is this voice to my left and I’m like, ‘Who is getting all this attention from the bartender that a single girl can’t even just get a water?’ So I looked and I was like, ‘Oh!’”The Brazilian model didn’t recognize Matthew right away. “He had a big beard. He had a Rasta hat on. And I kept looking down and I saw some things that I liked — I saw he had flip-flops on and I was like, ‘Oh, I like that.’ So I decided to hang around a little bit longer at the bar,” she says.Later that night, the pair bonded over some drinks. “I got her to my table and I made her, I mean, an incredible margarita,” says Matthew. “Over those margaritas (probably my third, her first), I understood her Portuguese better than I’ve ever understood it in the last 19 years. I spoke better Spanish than I ever have in my life, or ever probably will again. The language of love is coming out of Portuguese language and in Spanish that night and we both understood every single word.“The McConaugheys in their pantless ad.Courtesy of PatalonesLove and tequila still go go hand-in-hand for the power couple.Their organic blanco, reposado and añejo tequilas, which have recently becomeavailable nationwide, make up their first-ever joint business venture. They have helped each other behind the scenes, but this was the first “face-forward project.”“Starting a business relationship, you’re a couple and you’ve got a romantic relationship, it can throw things off kilter a bit,” says Matthew.Fortunately, any concerns were quickly put to rest when they got going. “We’re having fun with it. That was a promise and part of the vision that we have with the tequila,” adds Camila.Part of the fun comes from their pantless advertising campaigns shared over the last year. Photos for the brand have shown the starsriding motorcycles,playing pickleball,mowing the lawnand celebrating the spirit’s first birthday — all without pants.

Sandals in the club are alright, alright, alright, according toCamila Alves McConaughey.

The businesswoman andMatthew McConaughey, who recently celebratedthe first anniversaryof theirPantalones Organic Tequila, have been open about theirtequila-fueled meet cuteback in 2006.

“Out of the corner of my eye, this sort of aqua-green figure went floating across the frame about 20 feet in front of me,” Matthew told PEOPLE in 2016. “My eye went up and I remember what came out of my mouth. I didn’t say, ‘Who is that?’ I went, ‘What is that?’”

Camila’s memory from that night is a bit different. “The first time I saw him at the bar, he was trying to get the bartender to make these drinks,” the mother of three tells PEOPLE more recently at aPantalonesevent on Oct. 24.

Matthew McConaughey in flip-flops.Raymond Hall/GC

Raymond Hall/GC

“Coachingthe bartender to make the margarita,” theTrue Detectivestar, 54, corrects her with a laugh.

Camila, 41, continues: “All I kept hearing is this voice to my left and I’m like, ‘Who is getting all this attention from the bartender that a single girl can’t even just get a water?’ So I looked and I was like, ‘Oh!’”

The Brazilian model didn’t recognize Matthew right away. “He had a big beard. He had a Rasta hat on. And I kept looking down and I saw some things that I liked — I saw he had flip-flops on and I was like, ‘Oh, I like that.’ So I decided to hang around a little bit longer at the bar,” she says.

Later that night, the pair bonded over some drinks. “I got her to my table and I made her, I mean, an incredible margarita,” says Matthew. “Over those margaritas (probably my third, her first), I understood her Portuguese better than I’ve ever understood it in the last 19 years. I spoke better Spanish than I ever have in my life, or ever probably will again. The language of love is coming out of Portuguese language and in Spanish that night and we both understood every single word.”

The McConaugheys in their pantless ad.Courtesy of Patalones

Courtesy of Patalones

Love and tequila still go go hand-in-hand for the power couple.

Their organic blanco, reposado and añejo tequilas, which have recently becomeavailable nationwide, make up their first-ever joint business venture. They have helped each other behind the scenes, but this was the first “face-forward project.”

“Starting a business relationship, you’re a couple and you’ve got a romantic relationship, it can throw things off kilter a bit,” says Matthew.

Fortunately, any concerns were quickly put to rest when they got going. “We’re having fun with it. That was a promise and part of the vision that we have with the tequila,” adds Camila.

Part of the fun comes from their pantless advertising campaigns shared over the last year. Photos for the brand have shown the starsriding motorcycles,playing pickleball,mowing the lawnand celebrating the spirit’s first birthday — all without pants.

source: people.com