The blend of cryptocurrency and sports sponsorship has become crazier as Real Bedford, a non-league English football club, received $4.5 million investment in Bitcoin from Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss, the twins who founded the crypto exchange Gemini.

An Investment towards Ownership

Following the investment, the Winklevoss twins will share the ownership of the club with the crypto-focused podcaster Peter McCormack, who bought the club in his hometown of Bedford in 2021.

McCormack aims to take the club to the Premier League level and make it play with the country’s big names, like Manchester United and Chelsea FC. Currently, Real Bedford is playing in the ninth division of the English leagues. Its social following is limited, with only 18.5k followers on Twitter and about 3,650 followers on Instagram.

English football leagues’ tiers; Source: William Hill

Being a proponent of Bitcoin, McCormack enabled payment for game day tickets, merchandise, sponsorships, and beverages with Bitcoin.

“This has been a great few years for the club as we hit all of our growth goals and supported the community in a sustainable way,” said McCormack. “The demands of a fast-growing club are significant, and the backing from Tyler and Cameron will allow us to continue investing in Bedford and the local community.”

Sponsor to Owner

Before investing in becoming the co-owners, the Winklevoss twins sponsored the local football club at Bedford, a town with a population of 200,000.

However, compared to a few other big crypto brands, Gemini’s sports presence is limited. Apart from the English football club, the crypto exchange sponsored the Oxford-Cambridge Boat Race and Ava Keenan, a 12-year-old skier.

“We share in Peter’s deep conviction in Bitcoin and its ability to supercharge RBFC’s quest to make it into the Premier League,” said Tyler Winklevoss. “Since our first conversation more than two years ago, Peter has proven he knows how to build a successful club, and we’re excited to work alongside him as co-owners.”