The Bundesliga has agreed an NFT deal with football media platform OneFootball.
Starting with the 2023/24 season, OneFootball will be an official partner with the Bundesliga, looking to providing fans across Germany with access to digital collectables of the league’s top clubs such as Bayern Munich.
The partnership aims to curate digital player cards for fans to collect and exchange on OneFootball’s NFT marketplace Aera. The online football platform has also secured rights to produce NFT-based videos for the Bundesliga, titled ‘Digital Video Moments’.
“We couldn’t have imagined when we first started working with the Bundesliga that we would build the partnership and achieve Official Partner status. As a founder and as a fan, this is fantastic for our organisation and for fans around the globe,” said Lucas von
Cranach, CEO and Founder of OneFootball.
“Our vision is to connect the world of football and amplify the game. This long term relationship means we can do just this, giving fans the opportunity to own digital assets – so they have more access, more ownership and get even closer to the game we all love, in a way that’s never been done before. And where better to do this than with one of the best leagues in the world which is home to so many of the most exciting players.”
The collaboration aims to offer price points to make digital assets accessible for fans, in the hopes to drive the adoption of blockchain technology in the football community within Germany.
Bundesliga fans will be able to purchase and store digital collectables with their email and credit card on the Aera platform. The NFT marketplace is built upon the Flow blockchain which was helped by Animoca Brands and Dapper Labs.
This NFT-based partnership builds on OneFootball and the Bundesliga’s pre-existing relationship, as the Deutsch Football League (DFL) is a shareholder of OneFootball as well as Bundesliga club Borussia Dortmund. Donata Hopfen, CEO of the DFL, added: “The investment from our partners underlines the enormous popularity that German professional football enjoys. I am delighted that the design of the rights packages with classic products and innovative digital opportunities has been well received.”