Italy’s Serie A has become the latest professional sports league to partner with blockchain-based fantasy sports platform Sorare.

The multi-year deal will facilitate the development of Serie A-themed digital fan tokens, which can be collected, traded and used for fantasy competition on the Sorare platform from the 2022/23 season. 

Serie A’s deal with the company comes amid increasing collaboration between leagues and NFTs/blockchain, particularly with regards to fan tokens – whilst just last week the Italian top-flight entered into a digital collectibles partnership with OneFootball.

“At Lega Serie A we are always looking for opportunities to harness emerging technologies, to improve the fan experience and to help our clubs better engage with international audiences,” said Luigi De Siervo, Lega Serie A CEO.

“Sorare is at the forefront of this sector and uniquely combines fantasy football gaming with collectible NFT cards, which allows us to broaden our target audience in order to bring  younger fans closer to our football. 

“It is a partnership with great potential and we are ready to launch the first collections ahead of the 2022-23 season.”

Sporting engagement with fan token platforms has risen sharply over the past few years as leagues, associations and teams look for new ways to engage with supporters and strengthen revenue streams. 

Sorare has become one of the dominant players in this trend, having established a user base of over two million and partnering with 260 sports organisations – Serie A marks its 12th football league partnership, alongside the likes of Germany’s Bundesliga, Spain’s LaLiga and the US’ MLS.

 “This partnership is another milestone on our journey to become the next sports entertainment giant,” remarked Nicolas Julia, CEO and Co-Founder of Sorare.

“Lega Serie A is a global footballing powerhouse and home to many of the most celebrated and iconic teams in sports history. It is also home to some of the most passionate and enthusiastic fans in world football.  

“Italy is currently Sorare’s fastest growing market and Italian users are our second largest community globally, so we know there is huge demand for our fantasy game and collectibles in this market. 

“This partnership will help us accelerate this growth and allow more fans from across the world to get closer to the legendary clubs, world class players and future stars that make Serie A one of the world’s best leagues.”

Insider Analysis: Blockchain-based products are becoming a common staple of international sports, particularly football, as evidenced by the commercial success of platforms such as Sorare. 

In an interview with IS back in May, the company’s Head of Sales, Dan Sormaz, provided a breakdown of its product and business model, whilst also addressing regulatory concerns that Sorare’s platform could be classed as a form of gambling.

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