Khabib Nurmagomedov (29-0), one of the greatest fighters in UFC history, is officially ending his retirement, not to fight, but to play in ArenaTwo’s fan-controlled global football league.
Nurmagomedov and other stars that include World Cup and Champions League winners are teaming up with ex-Binance senior director and Arena Two founder, Omar Rahim, to tout crypto sports projects.
He is stepping onto the field as player-president of his own team, competing for glory in a new football league where fans make the calls through real time voting.
Web3 sports projects have been around before, but in the past, “fan engagement” meant voting on jersey colors or goal songs. Fun, but not material.
With ArenaTwo, instead of relegating token-holders to voting on minor, cosmetic changes, fans are given real power over the game itself, the company said. They can make live, tactical calls such as voting to remove an opponent’s player for two minutes, making goals count double, adding extra time to the match, and making other dramatic changes to the game.
In the past, these types of exciting fan-controlled changes were impossible to implement thanks to the need to negotiate with century-old sports clubs that would never relinquish control over the game itself. But ArenaTwo bypasses this problem by owning its entire IP, including the league, the teams, and the rules, giving fans unprecedented control.
That means:
Game-Changing Votes: Make strategy decisions and substitutions during the game.
True Skin in the Game: Fans stake ArenaTwo ($ATWO) tokens to co-own their team alongside Khabib and other stars, with rewards tied to results.
Exclusive Access: From private calls with athletes to trials where fans can actually get picked to play.
Unlike many celebrity projects, Nurmagomedov isn’t here to cash an ambassador check, the company said. He’s an equity partner in his franchise betting on the success of the league alongside the community.
Nurmagomedov said in a statement, “I retired from MMA undefeated, but I never retired from competition. Arena Two is the next challenge – and I don’t play to lose.”
Omar Rahim, CEO of ArenaTwo, said in a statement, “Most crypto sports projects failed because they couldn’t touch the actual game. We built ArenaTwo to fix that. By owning the league, we can finally give fans real power.”
Nurmagomedov is the first to be announced of eight presidents, who will lead franchises in ArenaTwo’s debut season, with more stars from football and beyond to be revealed later.
What’s next?
The league will have an $8 million prize pool. It will have an OG NFT Pass sale: September 17 (offers exclusive perks to holders); it will have a token sale on October 7, 2025; The global trials will be held in November 2025 where fans can try out. And the tournament season will run from January through April 2026.