Crystal Palace's Zaha, rapper Stormzy to buy 9th-tier club AFC Croydon

LONDON (AP) — Stormzy is set to become an owner of English ninth-tier soccer club AFC Croydon Athletic.

The 29-year-old grime star is part of a three-man consortium, including Crystal Palace forward Wilfried Zaha, that has agreed a deal to acquire the assets of the south London side.

Stormzy is from Croydon and has a long-standing friendship with the 30-year-old Zaha, who was born in Ivory Coast but raised in the London borough.

Croydon plays in the Combined Counties Football League Premier South Division.

Former Crystal Palace head of player care Danny Young is also in the consortium.

Croydon announced Tuesday that contracts had been exchanged with the existing ownership and the consortium "will own, operate and develop their childhood hometown football club."

A statement added: "Whilst completion is subject to legislative and governance procedures, 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."

Stormzy is not the first celebrity to get involved in a community-focused project. Hollywood owners Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney joined an open-top bus parade to celebrate Welsh soccer team Wrexham’s promotion in May to the fourth tier of English soccer. Reynolds and McElhenney have become regular visitors to Wrexham after completing their $2.5 million takeover of the down-on-its-luck team in 2021.

Last year, Stormzy launched a football program with Adidas to improve diversity in the sport by helping young black people secure roles off the field.

Zaha is already involved in community projects in the area through his own charitable foundation and an academy.

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