On Thursday, the National Football League (NFL) announced it was throwing the first-ever virtual Super Bowl Concert. The concert will take place on the metaverse gaming platform Roblox over Super Bowl Weekend and features rising hip-hop star Saweetie.
The first concert will be on February 10 in Rhythm City, a musical-themed gaming experience built on Roblox by Warner Music Group — Saweetie’s record label. It will then replay every hour on the hour until Super Bowl Sunday.
Saweetie said she’s excited for the iconic metaverse concert and for the chance to share her music with a “new audience in such a unique way.”
The Super Bowl Concert is sponsored by Intuit, and was developed in partnership with Gamefam, the largest game developer on Roblox. The companies also worked together with the NFL to create a Roblox experience called NFL Super Tycoon, launching on February 11.
The NFL Super Tycoon activation lets Roblox users simulate the experience of being an NFT team owner and be tasked with things like managing cashflow, taxes, payroll, and customer acquisitions with the assistance of Intuit products.
The metaverse concert in Roblox is part of the NFL’s broader push into the metaverse and Web3. The league has previously launched NFT collectibles built on the Flow blockchain, which have generated over $70 million in sales since August. It also offered NFT tickets in partnership with TicketMaster and Dapper Labs to over 100 football games this season.
Sports Leagues Look Bullish on Web3
The NFL isn’t the only sports league that’s bullish on the metaverse and Web3 technology. At Rarity Sniper, we’ve covered several sports leagues investing in Web3 recently. Here are the top three stories.
First, the Argentine Football Association (AFA) partnered with the Upland metaverse to bring NFTs and virtual experiences to fans. The Upland metaverse uses real-world geography tied to real-world cities and addresses. It also has a virtual stadium for sporting events.
Next, the Professional Fighters League announced its partnership with the NFT platform SportsIcon to create the “PFL Metaverse.” The platform lets athletes mint NFTs directly on the Flow blockchain, and fans can invest in the next generation of athletes and share in future revenue streams through its Future Icons project.
Finally, FIFA, soccer’s world governing body, inked a multi-year deal with the Upland metaverse to launch a series of Web3 games and apps ahead of the World Cup 2022 in Qatar. The partnership saw the creation of a virtual Qatar 2022 that recreated the Lusail Stadium and other real locations in the city.
The metaverse is creating entirely new ways for sports leagues, teams, and organizations to connect with fans — and many are taking advantage. We’ll be looking out for more news about the NFL’s virtual Super Bowl Concert in Roblox.