How an English club's bid to ‘be the most famous for Arabs' collapsed in five days

New York Times

22-04-2025

Just over a week ago, a new part-owner of fifth division team Dagenham & Redbridge appeared on Sky Sports and talked up his 'dream' to reach the Premier League.
Marwan Serry, an Egyptian YouTuber and entrepreneur, said he wanted Dagenham, with average attendances at their east London home of around 1,700, to 'be the most famous club for Arabs'. He added: 'I'm really excited, I feel like a child playing FIFA as a gamer and suddenly it becomes reality.'
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Dagenham's chairman Daniel Hall is the London-based figurehead for the North Sixth Group, the American firm which acquired the team via its subsidiary, Club Underdog, last May, buying Dagenham from a group of investors that included New York Yankees minority owner Peter B. Freund and former USMNT goalkeeper Tim Howard.
Speaking about Serry's arrival last Monday, Hall hailed a 'renaissance' in Egyptian football, citing Mohamed Salah's contract renewal at Liverpool and Omar Marmoush joining Manchester City from German club Eintracht Frankfurt in January, and the club claimed that Serry would bring 'global reach' to Dagenham.
Salma Mashhour, another social media influencer, was also appointed Dagenham's Director of Development & Engagement. Her Instagram includes photos with both Salah and Marmoush. She said that she and Serry had studied English clubs as far down as the tenth tier, adding that Serry wanted a team who plays in red in London, but insisting the immediate priority was to ensure 'everyone in the community' knows Dagenham. The club's X post announcing the pair's arrival, viewed 3.2million times, demonstrated their reach.
✍️ @serrymarwan Joins Daggers Ownership Group
Egyptian YouTuber & Erza3 founder (5M+ fans) brings global reach to the club.
Joining him is @salmashhour23 as Director of Development & Engagement.
Together they aim to grow the club through creativity, community & storytelling.
— Dagenham & Redbridge (@Dag_RedFC) April 14, 2025
This all seemed rather unusual for a team positioned 21st in the 24-team National League at the time, languishing in one of the four relegation spots. But by Friday, the new 'investment' had unravelled altogether, prompted by Mashhour's social media posts about the Israel-Gaza conflict coming to light and culminating in Serry announcing his 'complete withdrawal' from the club's ownership on Saturday.
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The Athletic has spoken with several figures at the heart of this extraordinary episode, including Dagenham's managing director Steve Thompson, Serry and Mashhour.
This is how a part-ownership of a English football club lasted only five days before dramatically falling apart.
Serry has over five million followers across social media and his Erza3 YouTube platform has become a particularly popular channel for Arabic-speaking followers of world football.
'The stereotype is about an Arab who has a lot of money but I'm an Arab and I don't have a lot of money — I have plans to get big, big investments in this club,' he told Sky Sports. 'I want Dagenham to be the most famous club for Egyptians and Arabs to support in English football.'
His idea appeared to be developing content about the club — not dissimilar to the manner in which Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney have captured the imagination at Wrexham — and introducing Dagenham & Redbridge to new markets.
Thompson has been involved at a senior level since 1981, preceding even Dagenham's merger with Redbridge Forest in 1992, which led to the formation of Dagenham & Redbridge. He said Serry and Mashhour filmed behind the scenes for several weeks before the ownership announcement, including interviews at the club's training ground with players and staff, as well as attending games to mingle with fans and capture footage.
Serry told The Athletic: 'Within the first 24 hours (of announcing his investment in Dagenham) I was approached by a number of investors and multiple sponsorship offers — I've received initial offers for various sponsorship deals as the news went viral all over the MENA (Middle East and North Africa) region and many brands wanted to be a part of our future.'
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Serry declined to specify any of these offers, or investors, citing confidentiality. He did, however, say that he was in conversations with DAZN, the broadcaster which holds the international media rights for the National League, saying that ideas included a promo code for Arabic fans and potential commercial deals for the streaming platform. DAZN was contacted by The Athletic but was not able to provide a comment prior to publication.
Thompson says the plan had been for the pair to produce a pilot for a docuseries, 'take it back to Egypt, see if there was an appetite for it and get funding it'.
Both Serry and Thompson declined to say how much money Serry had invested to become part of the ownership group, citing confidentiality. Serry said he was introduced to the club's shareholders by Mashhour, describing her as 'an instrumental part of this deal from day one'.
Social media posts by Mashhour came to light which provoked complaints. These included an Instagram message, posted on October 30, 2023, shortly after the October 7 attack on Israel. A military response followed by the Israeli government.
Her post represented a response to viral memes about the British television personality Piers Morgan, whose discussions with advocates of the Palestinian cause had often included him asking if they condemned Hamas. In her messages, she wrote that 'occupation creates resistance, Israel created Hamas and self-defense is not terrorism.' She added: 'So no Piers, I do not condemn Hamas, I condemn the brutal occupation, apartheid, international law violations and illegal settlements that created this genocide! If this is terrorism, then you created it.'
In a further seven-minute video, first reported by the British website Jewish News and which has been seen by The Athletic, Mashhour described the Israeli state as 'illegal' and questioned whether the attacks came at 'just the right time to give Israelis a common enemy' following protests internally against the country's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. The Jewish News report describes Mashhour as 'peddling conspiracy theories' in her video.
A petition was formed on Change.org on Tuesday demanding the removal of both Serry and Mashhour from Dagenham and arguing 'any support of their actions has no place in our diverse community'. It reached 558 signatures.
Thompson said the posts were brought to his attention on Tuesday afternoon, the day after the announcement. He told The Athletic: 'I found it very, very distasteful. With the history of the club and the multi-cultural, multi-racial identity of Dagenham & Redbridge, it didn't fit in with our ethos. There was obviously a very big backlash. We have a number of people from all faiths who found it wrong and very quickly came to the conclusion that Salma couldn't keep the role that we'd given her. I found the whole video wrong. I don't think I need to go into which bits.'
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Thompson said the club's local Labour MP Margaret Mullane made contact and one executive from a local Dagenham sponsor, who asked to remain anonymous in order to avoid the risk of social media abuse, told The Athletic they reached out to the club to express their concern. They said they would have given serious consideration to terminating their sponsorship if Serry and Mashhour had remained in place.
Mashhour responded to The Athletic via email. She insisted her posts were 'never an endorsement of any form of violence'.
She added: 'It was an expression of frustration at the way calls for empathy toward dying Palestinian civilians were being twisted into justifications for terror. I believe that condemnation without context is performative — and that, to truly try to end cycles that produce these horrors again and again, we need to address and understand their root causes.
'This post was a direct response to a segment on Piers Morgan Uncensored… I am deeply shocked that my words were taken as an endorsement of hatred or terrorism, which I unequivocally reject. My intent was always to promote empathy and understanding that violence should be condemned universally, not selectively as was happening on the show.'
She also denies that she peddled conspiracy theories, instead saying: 'The caption explicitly states that my issue was: 'Why aren't these questions asked?' I never stated personal opinions or pushed conspiracy theories — I presented questions that were circulating publicly and believed they deserved serious answers.
'The questions were intended to push for balanced, critical coverage. The video cites sources and avoids making personal claims. My English and Egyptian roots taught me deep respect for diverse perspectives and my PhD in politics enhanced my belief and conviction that open, balanced and constructive conversations are vital to any hopes of progress and peace. That's what I was trying to contribute.'
Mashhour was not without support herself and, as of Tuesday evening, her position was still intact. A counter-protest was launched on Change.org: 'Marwan Serry & Salma Mashhour stay for Dagenham club'.
This had over 5,000 signatures by Sunday night, while social media rapidly grew toxic and abusive in both directions.
By quirk of timing, the club had a fans' forum scheduled for the evening of Wednesday, April 16 at the club's stadium. At this point, supporter opposition to the Egyptian venture appeared to have ulterior reasoning, beyond the dispute about Mashhour's comments, owing to the club's recent performance on the pitch.
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A team who spent nine years in the Football League between 2007 and 2016 find themselves staring at relegation to the sixth tier of English football and Serry's bold claims of a future in the Premier League represented the tip of the iceberg for some fans already feeling exasperated by the club's owners.
Joel Page, a supporter who runs the Dagnificent fan website, spoke up at the forum, which was hosted by both Thompson and club chairman Hall.
'It was very fractious,' he said. 'It was going to be explosive anyway and the Egyptian investment added a ridiculous amount of fuel.
'It was unruly, it was anarchy, it was just an overspill of emotions.'
Page says he is not sufficiently informed on the Israel-Gaza war to comment on Mashhour's post but added: 'Obviously it doesn't help when the club is then aligned with a viewpoint that is at best controversial but my personal objection was the nonsense about saying he (Serry) does not have a lot of money, but that he wants to take us to the Premier League. Or how he said he liked us because we're a club in London that wore red. It had all the makings of something completely disastrous that we didn't want to be associated with.'
The club's social media following suddenly ballooned. Serry says Dagenham's Instagram following grew from 'a mere 13,000 to 315,000 within two days of the announcement'. Both Serry and Thompson pointed to these numbers as an indication of the potential global lift for the club. The Instagram page disappeared over the weekend before reappearing on Monday with the message 'We're back baby' and a follower count of 59,000.
Page said the club's social media pages became a battleground to express views about the Middle East. He said: 'There was cult-like following (of Serry) saying it's their club now and that we are now an Arabic football club. Social media is not the real world, but at the same time, it became impossible to engage with our own football club.
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'We're a small club, in a relegation battle. To be able to comment on Twitter and be able to have that forum is critical for a community club and it was taken away from us.'
Mashhour wanted to attend the forum — having not been given 'a clear indication' that her job was at risk — but says was asked to leave.
She said via email: 'I was even dismissed without dialogue although I went to the fan forum in good faith prepared to speak directly to fans at the forum and help clarify any concerns and to engage constructively. I was informed by Steve Thompson MD that he 'believed I was gone' but I was not offered a chance to take any steps to respond or explain myself. I was then asked to leave the stadium quickly before fans arrived because it would be 'too dangerous' for me.'
Thompson said Mashhour 'was never an employee of Dagenham & Redbridge FC, never had a contract or any remuneration agreement nor was ever an investor in either the club directly or the ownership group'. The club's own social media post had, however, announced her as 'Director of Development and Engagement' only 48 hours earlier.
Thompson added: 'During a half-hour discussion (before the forum) I expressed the opinion that her position with the club was untenable and that I thought it would be better if she stepped away, citing that her presence was now a distraction. Salma wanted to try and resolve the situation by speaking to some of the supporters individually at the meeting, but I expressed the opinion that the nature of the meeting would not facilitate such a nuanced approach. Salma then decided to leave of her own accord.'
Mashhour declined to comment further, saying her lawyers had advised her not to do so.
According to an executive at a sponsor of he club, this meeting was 'the most toxic' they had ever seen the atmosphere around the club. It started badly when it emerged manager Lewis Young — brother of Ashley Young, who has represented Watford, Aston Villa, Manchester United and Everton in the Premier League — had not attended, with the ownership saying it was more important to focus on upcoming games. Supporters booed, according to those in the room, with one fan voicing his upset at Serry likening his ownership of Dagenham to playing a video game.
Serry told The Athletic: 'Regarding the FIFA comment that I made during the Sky Sports interview, this was the first question in a long, serious interview. I was attempting to break the ice and to remember where it all started for me. Unfortunately, the Sky Sports interview only aired 10 per cent of what I said.'
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Another supporter stood at the forum and said 'this does not feel like the football club I fell in love with or recognise any more'. A different fan said the ownership had insulted the local Jewish community, while Suzanne Collier, a Jewish supporter of the team, said: 'I'm Jewish, I no longer feel safe here. I want the club to refund the hospitality I've got booked for the Altrincham game because frankly I don't want to be at this club any longer.'
Thompson says the timing of the fans' forum was 'horrible' but he thought it would be wrong to cancel the event and a chance for supporters to communicate with the club. He said neither he nor chairman Hall could provide clarity about Serry and Mashhour on Wednesday night because a 'process' was ongoing. He also said a 'final decision' had not been made at that point and that they were hoping Serry, at least, might remain and that his content plans for the club might still continue.
Serry told The Athletic he watched the scenes at the forum remotely. He said: 'I felt that I was treated unfairly and was not given a chance to express myself or my opinions.'
Mashhour added: 'The way my posts have been characterised this week has led to a torrent of abuse, shocking accusations, and even warnings that it would be unsafe for me to attend matches. And although this experience has affected me both personally and professionally. I have deep respect for Dagenham & Redbridge — its owners and fans. I won't allow the actions of a few to shape how I view the wider community, and I refuse to make sweeping statements in response to isolated negativity.'
On Thursday, the club posted on X once more. It read: 'Club Statement: Dagenham & Redbridge FC has removed Salma Mashhour from the position of Director of Development & Engagement, effective immediately.'
Mashhour told The Athletic she was not informed prior and 'found out through the club's social media post'.
Serry says he was 'not informed about the decision or any concerns or risk to her position'. He also says the club raised no concerns about either his or her social media content before announcing him as a new part of the ownership group.
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'I was taken by surprise by the decision to remove her which I found out about, just like everyone else via social media,' Serry told The Athletic.
The decision to remove Mashhour provoked another round of stinging criticism. The X post announcing her departure had 11 million views as of Monday.
Page, the Dagenham fan, said: 'The club have gone from being seen to support Hamas or Palestine, or whatever this woman's viewpoints were, to then, in her removal, now being seen as pro-Israel or pro-genocide. It's a drastic fluctuation of one extreme to the other.
'Some of the abuse I've received under the assumption that I'm Jewish or Israeli — neither of which I am — it's been ridiculous. It is just a PR disaster. All the while, the club's own fans are in the middle of it and just furious at it all. It's hard to put into words how badly we've got this wrong.'
On Thursday, Serry posted a video of himself, with a tearful Mashhour in the background, warning her removal was 'unacceptable' and that he would not 'shut up' about the matter. He then pleaded for no-one to attend the club's crucial relegation battle against Ebbsfleet United on Friday afternoon, saying he would reimburse those who boycotted. An attendance of 1,747 was recorded for Dagenham's 1-0 win.
…. ردي الرسمي قريب جدا علي الاعلان بفصل سلمي مشهور من ادارة النادي و لكن نداء للمشجعين العرب اللي كانوا رايحين بكرا ضروري ! ارجوكم عدم الذهاب و سيتم تعويضكم بالمبلغ الخاص للتذاكر مني شخصيا pic.twitter.com/jSGiz3oRn4
— Marwan Serry (@Serrymarwan) April 17, 2025
Syed Siddiqi, the former Green Party candidate for Ilford South, a local constituency, wrote on X: 'I'm appalled that Dagenham & Redbridge FC has removed Salma Mashhour as a Director over her anti-Zionist, pro-Palestine stance — a view shared by many in our community. It's time to boycott clubs that support genocide. #ShowRacismTheRedCard.'
Commenting generally about the past week, Thompson said: 'I can't control the ills of social media. There is a lot of good, there's a lot evil on there as well, and it stirs up such big divisions. We're not about divisions, we're about bringing people together.
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'When we got promoted to the Football League, we had the first British-Asian captain of a Football League club — I'd like you to include that in your story — he is Anwar Uddin and he's got an MBE. He was part of a team where we also had Sam Sloma, a Jewish player, who was featured on the front page of the Jewish Chronicle when we got promoted. We had Mark Arber, a white South African player, and we had John Nurse, a Barbadian international. We had a multi-racial team.
'In 2010, when the (far-right) British National Party were knocking on the doors of Barking and Dagenham… all the pundits thought that the BNP were going to get their first MP. I led it, we as a club stood up and said, 'No, this is wrong'. I've got that history, so I want to welcome everybody down here, I'm not about one culture or one group of people against another.'
At the end of a traumatic week, Thompson could afford a wry quip. As public relation disasters go, he acknowledged, this 'probably ranked up with the stories around Kurt Zouma', the defender at neighbouring club West Ham United who infamously kicked a cat in 2022, but defended the club's attempt to explore different sources of revenue.
'If we've now got the facilities because of the digital age to reach out to other parts of the world and we can make it relevant, then surely you should applaud clubs that are trying to do that,' he said.
Supporter Page is more sceptical: 'It came across like a gimmick. Does a fifth-tier football club need to connect with Arabic-speaking audiences? They say it is 'storytelling', all these buzzwords that really fundamentally mean nothing.
'It's ridiculous how we've become embroiled in all this. What were the tangible benefits? Sponsorship, maybe, but at the expense of losing your soul? Was it worth it from a guy who admitted he hasn't got that much money? We weren't going to get a multi-million-pound injection. '
On Saturday, Serry wrote on social media: 'I officially announce my complete withdrawal from the ownership of Dagenham & Redbridge Football Club and the cancellation of the investment project in the club. We will not compromise our principles.'
اعلن رسميا انسحابي الكامل من ملكية نادي داجنهام و ريدبريدج و الغاء مشروع الاستثمار في النادي و لن نتازل عن مبادئنا و جاري اتخاذ الإجرائيات القانونية لرد حق سلمى مشهور و شكرا لدعمكم المستمر
'I officially announce my complete withdrawal from the ownership of Dagenham & Redbridge… pic.twitter.com/atzMxVqFc4
— Marwan Serry (@Serrymarwan) April 18, 2025
He declined to comment as to whether he would be reimbursed for any money he may have invested into the club.
Serry thanked his followers for their vocal support, insisted he and Mashhour would stick to their principles and that legal action was being explored. He told The Athletic he 'will be still looking to invest in a UK-based club in the future', saying he understands his influence and the responsibility this carries.
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He said he has urged his followers 'to refrain from responding to any racist or provocative comments and to refrain from any hate speech or any abusive comments in a video posted on my social media accounts'.
On Sunday, the Redbridge Palestine Solidarity Network held an 'emergency protest' outside the club's stadium. Their Twitter post claimed a 'campaign by Zionists' had targeted Mashhour and their promotional poster labelled the event 'Daggers against Racism'. A story emerged that a local mosque had contacted the club to complain.
On Monday, a 0-0 draw at Braintree Town that keeps Dagenham in the relegation spots.
In a snapshot of modern times, the club now finds itself accused at every turn.