FIFA launches NFT collection amid 2023 World Cup

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Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA), the international body governing international competitions of soccer, will launch its own nonfungible tokens (NFT) collection ahead of the 2023 Club World Cup in Saudi Arabia.

According to the December 11 announcement, and in collaboration with blockchain firm Modex, an inaugural 100 NFT collection will premiere on December 15, featuring the chance to secure FIFA World Cup 2026 final tickets. In addition, a total of 900 other digital collectibles will be issued on the Polygon network (MATIC) and OpenSea this month, comprising memorable moments from the ongoing tournament and digital versions of memorabilia. 

“Scheduled to kick off in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia on December 12, the FIFA Club World Cup brings together seven of the world’s greatest football teams. The champions of FIFA’s six confederations are all participating,” developers wrote. The NFTs will be available on FIFA’s namesake platform, FIFA+ Collect. The NFT platform was launched in September 2022 and is powered by Algorand. 

“Digital collectibles increase the ways in which fans can interact with their favorite players, teams, and the game they love, and we’re honored to support FIFA in realizing this goal,” commented Francesco Abbate, CEO of Modex.

Since its inception, the FIFA+ Collect platform has facilitated 11 NFT drops, with 909,255 digital collectibles minted along with 16,448 holders. The platform saw a total of $2.4 million of trading volume across primary and secondary NFT markets from that time. However, “Mint Volume can be misleading as FIFA+ Collect Info cannot distinguish the packs obtained for free in challenges from the packs purchased with USDC [USD Coin],” FIFA+ Collect Info claims

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