Aston Villa FC has expanded its presence in the Web3 space via the launch of a digital sticker album in partnership with blockchain provider Chiliz.
Celebrating the club’s 150th anniversary, the limited edition sticker album enables fans to collect digital stickers for each home game at Villa Park. Previously, these stickers were only available in physical form, however, using Proof of Attendance Protocol (POAP) technology fans can collect them digitally.
According to Aston Villa, the digital extension has already seen over 18,000 collectables redeemed. Supporters can win prizes from an “unprecedented” catalogue of rewards such as training ground visits, match tickets and signed merchandise.
This isn’t the first time the Premier League club has utilised blockchain technology to engage with fans. In 2021, Villa partnered with Chiliz’s brand Socios, which saw the club provide fans with experiences through $AVL Fan Tokens.
Holders of these tokens were invited to play on the pitch at Villa Park, attend Champions League watch-alongs with club icons and vote on club decisions, including designs for corner flags, walkout tunnels and fanzones.
Over the past few years, blockchain technology has been viewed as a great way to boost fan engagement by some of the largest clubs in the world. Manchester United and City, Paris Saint Germain and Barcelona have all utilised tokens in some form.
While these clubs have used collectables individually, Serie A expanded its partnership with Chiliz last year. Italy’s premier football division offered fans a chance to own a piece of their club’s history by accessing Game-Scored balls from Serie A and Copa Italia matches.
The initiative proved to be a great method of interacting with not only different clubs but also nations, with 188 balls collected by fans across 16 different countries.
At the time of the deal, Serie A CEO, Luigi De Siervo, said: “We are very pleased that the relationship with Socios.com can continue for another three years. A league as important as Serie A must continue to feed the passion that unites our fans with the protagonists of the Championship.
“Given the great success of past seasons, starting this year we will give more and more fans the chance to win goal balls, unique and original items that represent an extraordinary collector’s opportunity. Owning memorabilia of one’s favourite team’s memorable moments represents the ultimate achievement for a fan.”
These partnerships, like all good sponsorships, are beneficial both ways. Blockchain technology has recently become more mainstream, assisted by US President Donald Trump’s favourable regulations on the sector.
Football and other sports have also played a significant role in this shift, as highlighted by Insider Sport’s interview with Stephanie Wilks-Wiffen, Director of Marketing of UK and DACH at eToro, last year.
Social trading and multi-asset investment company eToro is among the companies capitalising on sports popularity through marketing, which improves brand recognition and educates supporters about the sector at the same time.
Commenting on the motivation for eToro to enter the European football market, Wilks-Wiffen said: “Sports teams also have very engaged communities of fans and there is a natural synergy with eToro in this sense, as we’re a community-based investing platform where users communicate their strategies and learn from each other.”
