Manchester City one of the World’s most recognizable football brands reckon their physical stadium is not enough. So, they have announced they will build the World’s first virtual football stadium in the metaverse via a partnership with Sony.
The project which is still at the early stages is part of a 3-year deal with Sony. Experts from Sony virtual reality team have been brought on board for the project. Their intention is, you should to build a Prove of Concept (POC). They have already begun to virtually map the stadium, and then recreate it in the Metaverse.
Why a virtual football stadium?
Their aim is to allow fans around the Globe to watch the team live in a virtual Eithad Stadium. The Sony Press release states,
“Sony is collaboratively exploring with Manchester City Football Club, to maximize the potential of online fan engagement experiences.”
The world’s first virtual football stadium will not be limited to watching live games. Apart from being a realistic interpretation of the stadium, there is a lot more to be had under the roof. The project envisions a world where fans can meet players and buy digital goods, such as NFTs, exclusive only to the virtual stadium. Moreover, fans can get fully customizable avatars and begin a whole new way of following their team.
Toshimoto Mitomo, Officer in charge of Intellectual Property and Business Incubation Platform, Sony Group Corporation said.
“Through this PoC, Sony will support Manchester City to further increase the value of its content and engagement with its fans around the world. Sony aims to create an online fan engagement platform that brings the Club and its global fans closer together.”
Nuria Tarre, Chief Marketing & Fan Experience Officer, City Football Group said,
“This partnership with Sony puts City at the development stage of an exciting project that will create immersive digital fan experiences that have never been seen before in football. We’re looking forward to launching this collaboration and bringing together Sony’s industry-leading technologies with the global network of Manchester City fans.”
Premier League clubs looking at the metaverse
Manchester City are Premier League trailblazers when it comes to the Metaverse. According to the Liverpool Echo, their Premiership rivals Liverpool is looking at ways to take advantage of the Metaverse through their Nike kit partnership.
What’s more, ex-players from the famous 1990’s-2000’s Manchester United team, have recently announced they are launching a football centered DAO. The DAO will allow sports fans to invest in projects side by side with the ex-players. These include Gary Neville, Paul Scholes, and Nicky Butt.
Afterthought
Manchester City FC seems to have their finger on the pulse with emerging tech, especially, VR. However, these are early doors for the Metaverse, and we are going to see many more teams and players from different sports enter the space. So, you should strap in and stay tuned to NFT News Today for all that’s about to happen.
