FIFA+ Collect just announced a new collaboration with Modex for the launch of an NFT project during the FIFA World Cup Saudi Arabia 2023 tournament that begins today.
The new limited-edition NFT project consists of only 100 NFTs, and will drop on December 15th. The rarest NFTs will secure lucky fans a ticket to the FIFA World Cup 26 finals, scheduled for December 22.
According to the news, a total of 900 Polygon-based NFTs will also become available on OpenSea on December 19th. The NFTs represent exclusive footage of the ten day tournament occurring in Saudi Arabia between December 12th and 22nd.
The CEO of Modex, Francesco Abbate said that the platform is “delighted” to launch a new series of digital collectibles that can “secure actual FIFA match items and FIFA World Cup 26 final access.” Romy Gai, the Chief Business Officer of FIFA added that they are excited to “take the FIFA+ Collect platform to new heights.”
The tournament is currently taking place in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, between seven of the top football teams in the world. Some of the teams include Manchester City FC, Club Leon, Auckland City, and the Urawa Reds — the latter of which recently entered Web3 a few weeks ago when it announced it was collaborating with Minkabu for a new NFT collection powered by TNXNET.
According to the report, the NFTs were initially minted on the Algorand blockchain. The second installation on Polygon signals the Layer 2 blockchain’s growing popularity with Web3 gaming and sports projects.
Football Embraces Web3 Technology
Fans who hope to secure a ticket to the FIFA World Cup Saudi Arabia 2023 championship should be excited about the limited-edition NFT drop from FIFA+ Collect and Modex. But this certainly isn’t the first NFT launch we’ve seen in football (soccer). At Rarity, we’ve covered dozens of articles about NFT projects from football teams and leagues. Here are some of the top stories.
First, about a week ago, the Urawa Reds, one of the teams participating in the FIFA World Cup Saudi Arabia tournament, launched its own NFT collection to connect with fans. The NFTs contain rare videos, photographs, and audio from team matches. They are also connected to physical and online purchases via a QR code.
Next, this summer, Credit Suisse partnered with the Swiss Football Association to release 756 limited edition NFTs on Ethereum containing portraits of the Swiss Women’s National Team. The NFTs opened token-gated and ‘phygital’ experiences like a meet-and-greet, signed jerseys, and physical artwork.
Finally, in January, the Royal Spanish Football Federation (RSEF) dropped an NFT collection featuring the top two teams from the Spanish Super Cup. The NFTs, which were limited to 473 unique pieces, sold out in under an hour.
Since the launch of NBA Top Shot in 2020, NFTs have been popular in sports as a way to capture critical moments and connect leagues and players with fans. The latest launch from FIFA+ Collect shows that sports leagues around the world are still interested in the nascent technology and investing time and energy in the space. At Rarity Sniper, we anticipate many more Web3 initiatives in sports will come to fruition in the coming months and years.