Manchester City Football Club has initiated a multi-year collaboration with Quidd, a subsidiary of Animoca Brands, aimed at developing and launching digital collectibles along with innovative promotions and fan experiences. This partnership will see Quidd crafting "special edition" digital collectibles, including cards designed to unlock real-world experiences for fans.
Tom Boyle, Vice President of Global Partnership Marketing and Operations at City Football Group, heralded the partnership in a blog post, expressing excitement about revolutionizing traditional football card and collectible experiences in the digital age. He emphasized the opportunity to strengthen connections with fans globally and eagerly anticipates collaborating with Quidd to innovate digital experiences for fans and players alike.
The inaugural product of this collaboration will be a series of 200 custom digital player cards set to launch on May 2. Additionally, the first 10,000 "Cityzens" – a term affectionately referring to Manchester City fans – who purchase a card pack will receive two exclusive "For the Fans" packs. Through unlocking digital rewards via Quidd packs, fans will gain access to a range of real-world events and purchasing opportunities, such as official Manchester City merchandise and hospitality tickets, as well as exclusive experiences like watching the first-team training at the City Football Academy.
Manchester City has recently made strides in the NFT space, introducing the "Unseen City Shirts" NFT series on the OKX blockchain on April 22. This series ties a limited number of NFTs to physical limited edition jerseys featuring hand-drawn artwork. Additionally, the club is partnering with Sony to create a virtual rendition of their iconic home, the Etihad Stadium, slated to be the first officially licensed football stadium in a virtual universe.
On another front, while Manchester City explores digital innovations, other clubs are delving into cryptocurrencies for their long-term strategies. The Winklevoss twins, for instance, have invested $4.5 million in Bitcoin into Peter McCormack’s Royal Bedford Football Club, signaling bullish sentiment towards BTC and the club's aspirations of reaching the Premier League in the future.
