Crypto investors known for 'Social Network' fame buy unheard of English soccer team

Cryptocurrency billionaires Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss, perhaps best known for their depiction in the Hollywood blockbuster The Social Network, have completed a huge investment into the eighth-tier English soccer team, Real Bedford FC .

The semi-professional team currently leads the way in the Southern League-Division One Central as it aims for its third successive promotion.

Now the team will be led in part by the Winklevoss twins, who have been named co-owners alongside Peter McCormack following their $4.5 million Bitcoin investment.

Since purchasing RBFC in 2021, [McCormack] has made significant progress towards his goal of leading the team into the Premier League .

Real Bedford won a promotion from the 10th tier to the 9th tier in their debut season and are currently at the top of the table this season, looking to achieve a back-to-back promotion from the 9th tier to the 8th tier, the team said in a statement .

This deal has been on the table since April 2024, with the finalities only concluded on Wednesday, according to Sky Sports .

But their relationship with Real Bedford goes even further back, with the Winklevoss twins cryptocurrency exchange, Gemini, having been named a team sponsor in 2022.

Real Bedford plans to use this financial injection to help establish the teams bitcoin treasury, construct a new training facility, launch an academy, further the teams girls and youth teams, and increase their funding in the teams hardship fund, which will ensure that no child in Bedford misses out on the opportunity to play football due to economic reasons.

The Winklevoss twins, who have a combined net worth of $2.7 billion, bring with them their fair share of sporting prowess.

Following a successful rowing career at Harvard, they went on to represent Team USA at the 2008 Beijing Olympics, finishing sixth in the men's coxless pair event.

They also competed together at the 2007 Pan American Games, claiming silver medals in the mens coxless four and golds in the mens eight event.

For many, their names will be most familiar from 'The Social Network,' which depicted their legal battles with Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg after they alleged he had stolen their idea while in college.

The battle resulted in a $65 million settlement in 2010.

"We believe that Real Bedford has the ability to defy the odds, upset the establishment and dethrone incumbents, Cameron said of their upcoming investment in 2024.

"We love underdog stories that have the ability to literally change the game." The Winklevoss twins are the latest in a line of American celebrities to invest in British soccer, most notably led by Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney who serve as co-owners of EFL League One side Wrexham AFC .

This season the Hollywood duo are competing against seven-time Super Bowl champion Tom Brady , part owner of Birmingham City, for promotion to the Championship.

Further up the pyramid, former NFL Defensive Player of the Year J.J.

Watt is an investor in Championship club Burnley FC, while Hollywood superstar Michael B.

Jordan owns a stake in AFC Bournemouth..

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