J.W. Craft: From Tulsa Roots to Big League Vision: Investing in Community Through Sports

In this episode

In this episode I sit down with J.W. Craft, co-owner of FC Tulsa and the Ascension Saint John Sportsplex (formerly the Titan Sports Complex). J.W. moved to Tulsa at four years old, grew up playing basketball and baseball, went on to play basketball in college, and after building a career across some of the biggest cities in the country — D.C., New York, L.A., San Francisco, Dallas — he felt a strong pull back home. He came back almost twenty years ago to raise his family and to invest in Tulsa's future.

J.W. and his brothers Ryan and Kyle acquired FC Tulsa six years ago, rebranding from the Tulsa Roughnecks to put the city at the center of everything. As he says, every televised game is almost a two-hour commercial for Tulsa. What he didn't anticipate was the emotional impact — letters from parents about what the team meant to their kids, players who fall in love with the community and stay to raise families. I love that he sees sports as something that brings people together, sets aside our differences for a couple of hours, and gives kids real heroes they can see in their own community.

We also talk about working alongside family (his two brothers and, earlier, his father), the intentionality behind the FC Tulsa rebrand, the vision for a healthier, more active community through the Sportsplex, and how he's raising five kids with high expectations and real-world practice — including making them interview for their own summer jobs. And of course, I ask my thriving-in-2025 question. If you're carrying a dream to invest in your own community, this one will encourage you to keep going.