WAGMI United
The business, the turning points, and the decisions behind them.
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Sections to complete：05
01 / WHAT IT BUILT
What the company did
WAGMI United (short for 'We're All Gonna Make It') was a US crypto investor consortium, fronted by co-founders Preston Johnson and Eben Smith, that set out to reimagine professional sports-club ownership through Web3. After a rejected bid for Bradford City in December 2021, the group acquired a controlling stake in English League Two club Crawley Town in April 2022. Its model: sell NFTs giving fans voting rights on club decisions and a stake in 'the Internet's Team', using the proceeds and a global online fanbase to fund a rise to the Premier League.
02 / WAGMI United FAILURE REASONS
Failure reasons
The experiment collapsed on the pitch and in the market at the same time. Crawley finished the 2022/23 season 22nd - their worst finish in 12 Football League years, three points above relegation - while five managers cycled through the club. The crypto crash wiped out the NFT funding model that was supposed to bankroll the project, and the supporters' alliance turned hostile, calling for the founders' heads. By January 2025, WAGMI had sold down most of its stake to new investors as fans balloted on demanding the group sell up entirely. Crypto wealth could buy a football club, but it could not buy results, patience, or a sustainable business model.
03 / EVENT HISTORY
Events in the structured record
- Bradford bid rejected
WAGMI United makes a cryptocurrency-backed offer for Bradford City AFC; chairman Stefan Rupp rejects it, saying his responsibility is to protect the club's long-term future.
- Crawley Town acquired
In April 2022, WAGMI United acquires a controlling stake in Crawley Town from Ziya Eren, promising NFT-based fan governance and a march to the Premier League.
- NFT raise
WAGMI raises about 3.5 million pounds in its first NFT drop (around 9,000 NFTs at roughly 355 pounds each), with holders getting voting rights on club decisions.
- Collapse on the pitch
Crawley finish 22nd in League Two - their worst finish in 12 years - with five managers in one season; the crypto downturn guts the NFT funding model and the supporters' alliance calls for the founders to go.
- Stake sold down
By January 2025, WAGMI has sold a substantial portion of its Crawley holdings to new investors (including companies linked to Post Malone's manager and US venture capitalist Ryan Gilbert) as the supporters' association ballots members on calling for WAGMI to sell up.
04 / CONTEMPORARY REBUILD ASSESSMENT
Difficulty of rebuilding this project today
Material for this section is being gathered and checked. It will appear here once ready.
Overall assessment: Not completed
05 / CAUSAL CHAIN / AFTERMATH
Material for this section is being gathered and checked. It will appear here once ready.