YouTube star KSI targets Premier League after announcing investment in Dagenham & Redbridge | OneFootball

YouTuber suggested he will have a say in transfer dealings

KSI has purchased a stake in Dagenham & Redbridge FC, telling fans that he hopes to take the club to the Premier League.

Dagenham, who currently sit 13th in the National League South, have welcomed plenty of new investment in recent months, with the American consortium Happy Fan Group buying the club outright last month.

They installed former player Anwar Uddin as chairman, while current striker Andy Carroll has also but money into the side.

The YouTuber-turned-musician-turned-boxer, whose real name is Olajide Olayinka Williams Olatunji, is the latest high-profile addition to the ownership group, and he has suggested he will have a hand in footballing operations.

“Something big is going to happen,” he said in a video on Instagram. “I’m a man that does whatever I want.

“You can’t ever stop wanting more. I am buying Dagenham & Redbridge Football Club.

“Playing a video game and running a football club is very different, I know that. With this club, I want to do the unthinkable. I want to take Dagenham & Redbridge to the Premier League.

“It’s obviously going to take time but I’d say realistic stage is to get out of this league and entering the National League. We need to improve the team. I have some additions to really take it to another level, and I want to build the community.”

He promised to run the club with transparency: “I know to some of you it might be scary, me being one of the owners. But I’m reachable, you can literally tweet me and I’ll see it. I’m approachable.

Standing alone in the terraces at Victoria Road, he added: “What owner do you know who will sit with the fans like this? That’s me, bro, that’s me!”

According to a report in The Athletic, KSI has purchased a 20 per cent stake in the club, but the deal is yet to be ratified by the National League.

The announcement of KSI’s investment follows the news that managing director Stephen Thompson would leave his post after calling time on his 45-year stint with the club.

KSI first found fame in the early 2010s by making YouTube videos about the video game FIFA, and is now a general TV and social media personality. His personal YouTube channel boasts 17.3million subscribers, and he has a further 13.1m Instagram followers.