It seems that each passing day, another crypto company find their way into football. The Washington Post reported that WAGMI United, an American crypto firm, is in advanced stage of buying an EFL cup. This was later revealed to be Bradford City.
WAGMI United To Purchase Bradford City
WAGMI United are led by Preston Johnson, a prominent sports gambling analyst, and Eben Smith, a former derivatives trader.
Other notable members includes Daryl Morey, the Philadelphia 76ers’ team president; businessman Gary Vaynerchuk, the chair of VaynerX; social media personality Bryce Hall, who has more than 21 million TikTok followers.
By buying Bradford City, WAGMI United are looking to build collection of NFTs featuring characters, uniforms, videos or photos branded by the club. The group also hope to transfer some IP rights to the NFT owners, which means the fans can have their own merchandising opportunities.
The group won’t offer traditional ownership shares, but one can obtain a piece of a sports team through the sales of NFTs.The money generated by NFTs will be then reinvested into the club.
Concerns Regarding The Take Over
The initial reaction to this news has not been a welcoming one.
Si Lloyd of FootballJOE has voiced his displeasure at the deal, citing concerns over the commitment of WAGMI.
The fact that Washington Post included the article with Eben Smith saying: "And our hope is that it works. There’s not that much downside if it doesn’t.” reinforces Lloyd's fear. It's hard not to question the true motive of WAGMI going into this takeover.
The fact that the leaders of the group has next to no formal experience in football is another factor to worry about.
Matt Slater from The Athletic also shares the same sentiment, although with a more sarcastic tone.
Things got so serious that Bradford City themselves have issue an official statement regarding the rumour.
What do you think of WAGMI United taking over Bradford City? Let us know you thought.