KSI has announced that he is buying non-league side Dagenham and Redbridge with the aim of taking them to the Premier League.
The YouTube star-turned-rapper, boxer, Britain’s Got Talent judge and multiple business owner made the sensational announcement on Tuesday afternoon with a three-minute video filmed at the club’s Victoria Road stadium.
‘I want to tell the world something big is going to happen,’ he said. ‘I’ve done boxing, music, YouTube content, I’ve done TV stuff, I’ve been around the world, done tours. I’m a man that does whatever I want. You can’t ever stop wanting more.
‘I am buying Dagenham and Redbridge Football Club.’
The east London outfit were only formed in 1992 and competed in League One in the 2010-11 campaign, but have slid down the divisions in recent years and now play in the National League South.
‘Years ago, I saw the excitement, the happiness, the joy,’ KSI continued. ‘I want to bring that back and then surpass it.
KSI says he is ‘buying’ Dagenham and Redbridge and wants to take them to the Premier League
The 32-year-old, whose real name is Olajide Olatunji, is the president of the UK’s Baller League
‘I want the place to be pumping. I want the place to be rocking. I want it to be an event whenever you come here.’
The 32-year-old, who is a boyhood Arsenal fan and co-owns Prime Hydration with WWE wrestler and internet star Logan Paul, added that ‘playing a video game and owning a football club is very different’.
But, he joked, his experience of playing EA Sports’ video game franchise FIFA will help him in his quest of hoisting The Daggers from the sixth-tier to the top flight of English football.
‘I want to do the unthinkable,’ he continued. ‘I want to take Dagenham and Redbridge to the Premier League.
‘It’s obviously going to take time, but I’d say in realistic stages, getting out of this league and entering the National League, we need to improve the team, have some additions to really take it to another level, and I want to build the community.
‘You know, everyone here is fantastic, hard-working people, and I want to be the man that can affect things on the pitch as well as off the pitch.’
Addressing the fans directly, KSI said he admits it might be ‘scary’ to see him ‘being one of the owners’.
But, in a sign of the times, he added: ‘You can literally tweet me, and I will see it. You can let your frustrations out to me or celebrate with me. I’m approachable.’
As the video compilation cuts to footage of him fighting fellow YouTube star Joe Weller, he said: ‘I’m a fighter. I’ve broken my nose, I’ve broken my hand, I’ve broken my thumb. But I keep going, no matter what.
KSI has previously fought against the likes of Tommy Fury and Logan Paul in the boxing ring
He is a judge on Britain’s Got Talent alongside Simon Cowell, Amanda Holden and Alesha Dixon
‘With Daggers, I’m going to keep fighting. I’m going to do everything I can to make sure we succeed. I’m just ready to get started.’
Reposting his video on X, the club shared an image of KSI in the bedroom he used to film his early YouTube videos in, with a photoshopped Dagenham and Redbridge shirt across his chest.
Club chairman and former captain Anwar Uddin MBE then posted: ‘The game is evolving and so are we. Delighted to welcome KSI to Dagenham and Redbridge. Looking forward to writing the next chapter of our history together.’
Uddin also shared an image of himself alongside KSI, who was holding a No 19 shirt.
Daggers’ chief commercial officer John Grabowski said the content creator’s arrival is ‘transformative for the club’.
Last week, former Liverpool and Newcastle striker Andy Carroll – who plays for the team – also became a shareholder of the club, who were purchased by US investors Happy Fan Group in February.
The Athletic have reported that KSI will own a 20 per cent stake in Dagenham and Redbridge.
KSI’s venture into football started in 2024 through the launching of the UK’s star-studded Baller League, the six-a-side tournament he is the president of. He has also played in YouTube group The Sidemen’s charity matches, which last year raised almost £5million.
Alongside his footballing investments, KSI co-founded Misfits Boxing in 2022 and has regularly released music since 2015. His second solo album All Over The Place was No 1 in the UK charts.
He also co-owns children’s food company Lunchly with Paul and YouTuber Mr Beast, who has almost 500 million subscribers on the platform.