Grime sensation Stormzy and Crystal Palace FC forward Wilfred Zaha, have teamed up to take over AFC Croydon Athletic, a club that plays in the ninth division of English football and one that both stars have spent much of their childhood growing up around the local area.
This marks the latest move in the world of celebrity-football crossovers, but unlike Ryan Reynolds taking over AFC Wrexham and Michael B. Jordan acquiring part-ownership of AFC Bournemouth, Big Stormz and Zaha’s AFC Croydon venture is a lot closer to home.
So, how far does both star’s close ties to Croydon stretch? Stormzy was born and raised in the area and was even awarded the Freedom of the Borough of Croydon last month.
Zaha moved to Croydon from the Ivory Coast at the age of four, where he spent his early years paying £1 to show off his talents for his local Thornton Heath grassroots club, Whitehorse Wanderers.
The third and final party who’s joining Stormzy and Zaha is Danny Young – a former Crystal Palace employee who spent almost 10 years at the club occupying several roles, such as Head of Player Care and Head of Kit.
Excited for the takeover, AFC Croydon Athletic explained in a statement: “The three consortium members are excited about developing a community asset in the borough that gave them their own opportunities. They hope to take the entire community on this exciting journey with them.”
AFC Croydon Athletic was established in 2012 by supporters after financial problems, due to the owner at that time Mazhar Majeed, being sentenced to prison in 2011, forced the permanent closure of Croydon Athletic FC.
Vice-chairman of the club, Paul Smith, took over as chairman and has led the club ever since 2012. Playing at Mayfield Road Stadium in Thornton Heath Infront of a capacity of 3,000 people, AFC Croydon Athletic has just finished 15th in the Combined Counties League Premier South Division.
Wilfred Zaha’s future is currently uncertain, his contract with Crystal Palace has finished and although the 30-year-old has reportedly been offered a new deal from Palace, he’s yet to accept it as well as any offers from any other clubs.
I’m curious if Zaha will attempt to persuade any of his Crystal Palace teammates to ditch the Premier League and become a star for AFC Croydon Athletic in division 9, or perhaps Zaha himself is planning on playing their one day?
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