Paris-based Sorare has developed a blockchain fantasy football game. Today it announced a licensing deal with Atletico Madrid, Valencia CF and Schalke 04. The game uses blockchain player cards as collectibles which are tradeable. Sorare also has an agreement with West Ham United and several other clubs.
Blockchain for digital collectibles is gaining ground, especially with European football clubs. The idea is to engage fans around the globe who cannot physically attend matches. For such fans, getting their hands on the club’s official merchandise can be difficult.
Sorare offers limited edition digital collectibles powered by a blockchain, which fans can own, freely trade and use in the fantasy football game. The game has official licenses from 30 football clubs, including the Belgian leagues and plans to announce new participants soon.
Gamers or football fans can compose teams of five blockchain cards to compete in the Fantasy Football Leagues to earn prizes and unlock achievements. Managers, or the gamers, get ranked based on the real-life performance of the players. They also receive bonus points depending on the rarity and characteristics of the blockchain cards.
“We believe blockchain technology creates a truly unique product that fans can collect, manage and engage within a fun game, and we are excited to partner with Sorare to introduce these digital collectibles to the Valencia CF community,” said Guillaume Henric-Coll, Valencia CF Licensing Manager.
Sorare is underpinned by the Ethereum blockchain and uses the ERC721 non-fungible token standard for the digital collectibles. In May, ConsenSys invested in the firm’s €500,000 seed funding ($554,000), and in October, the startup joined game developer Ubisoft’s Entrepreneurs Lab’s Program.
Atletico Madrid and West Ham United have separate deals with fan engagement platform Socios.com. In the latter case, the firm is developing fan tokens for the two clubs, which fans can use to vote on certain polls, earn rewards and access exclusive merchandise. In comparison, with Sorare, the emphasis is on the fantasy team aspect and collectibles. Sorare clarified they have a licensing deal with the two clubs, and claimed that Socios.com has sponsorship deals (we have not confirmed).
London-based startup Fantastec has a blockchain game which competes with Sorare. Fantastec SWAP is a digital collectibles platform and has a licensing deal with Real Madrid, Arsenal and Borussia Dortmund. SWAP hosts digital player cards with blockchain being used to authenticate player autographs and content on those cards.
Animoca Brands subsidiary Stryking has a blockchain collectible platform and has a deal with FC Bayern Munich. But this platform is not limited to football like the ones mentioned above. Animoca Brands has developed a game for Formula 1 called F1 Delta Time, offering non-fungible tokens of official team cars.
