NFT investment firm buys Crawley Town
The new owners say they're looking to 'shake up the status quo'
An NFT investment firm based in America has become the new owners of Crawley Town - with an eye towards getting the Reds into the Premier League.
Wagmi United have purchased Ziya Eren’s controlling shares in the West Sussex side, which currently plays in League Two.
The new owners have pledged a new era of unprecedented transparency and accountability to supporters and the Crawley community - saying fans will have the opportunity to vote on the co-founders' place in the club if the team fails to achieve promotion to League One within the next two season.
Preston Johnson, the co-founder of Wagmi United, said:
“Crawley Town Football Club is a club with more than 125 years of rich history that we revere and respect.
"However, a conventional approach to ownership hasn’t worked, and the club is losing hundreds of thousands of pounds while its fans suffer through year after year of uninspiring results on the pitch.
"We think the club can do better and our fans deserve better. Sports are supposed to be fun and bring communities together.
"At Crawley Town, we’re going to shake up the status quo, try out some new ideas, and build a worldwide community of fans new and old that can be excited to cheer on the Red Devils together — stretching from West Sussex to anywhere in the world with an internet connection.”
The agreement with WAGMI United will see Ziya Eren, Erdem Konyar, Emre Eren and Nuhkan Ruzgar leave the board with immediate effect.
In addition to Wagmi co-founders Preston Johnson and Eren Smith, full details of a new board will be shared in due course.
First Team Manager John Yems said:
“This is an exciting time for the club. Let’s hope that we can continue the good progress we have made and take the club forward. I would also like to place on record a thank you to the previous owners. They gave me the opportunity to manage the football club, and I wish them all the best for the future.”
Crawley Town's next match is a home game against Barrow on Saturday (April 8th).