Liverpool have become the first sports team in the world to launch virtual merchandise through Meta's newly released Avatars Store.
The licensing agreement that the Reds have in place with Meta, the owners of Facebook and Instagram, means users on Meta’s platforms will have the option of kitting out their digital avatars with Liverpool kits or items from the club’s lifestyle collection.
The agreement represents the club's next step into the metaverse having had a rather disappointing launch of their NFT collection earlier this year, where just five per cent of the available NFTs were sold.
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The initial offering has versions of Liverpool's home and away shirts, as well as club-branded hoodie and sweatpants outfits, available to users in the UK, US, Canada, Mexico, Spain, Italy, and Thailand. A debut of the merchandise for Meta Quest headsets that bring users into virtual reality worlds is scheduled for later this year as the Reds look to lead the way in exploring digital markets to boost commercial revenues.
Drew Crisp, senior vice-president for digital at Liverpool, said: "We’re incredibly excited to be the first Premier League club with our own Meta Avatars. This is another fantastic opportunity for our global fanbase to digitally engage with Liverpool Football Club and create their own individual club-coloured avatars.
"Having a digital connection to the club that our fans adore – whether they’re here, near or far – is so important and helps to bring our global family closer together when physical connections aren’t always possible.
"We have more than 70 million global supporters following our Facebook and Instagram channels, and we’re really looking forward to seeing many of those avatars change and don our iconic kit or lifestyle apparel."
The Meta Avatars Store launched in June of this year with high-end fashion houses such as Balenciaga, Thom Browne and Prada offering digital items for purchase.
A Meta statement read: "As the metaverse evolves, avatars will be a powerful way to find new friends who love your favourite clubs as much as you do. Plus, the metaverse will unlock exciting new business opportunities for the sports industry — and the Avatars Store is a big step toward that future.
"Merchandise sales have historically been a revenue driver for clubs, and being able to sell virtual merchandise will open an entirely new revenue stream."
Liverpool kit suppliers Nike last year moved to file a patent with the United States Patent and Trademark Office, with the view to selling virtual branded items in the metaverse, through the likes of online video gaming worlds where billions are members.
Liverpool's deal with Nike stands at a guaranteed £30m per year, but it is the 20 per cent made from royalties where the potential for major gains lies, with some industry analysts predicting that could make the deal worth close on £70m per year, which is the sum that Manchester United are guaranteed from Adidas through their kit deal. But there is no ceiling for the Liverpool and Nike deal - it is as valuable as the market decides.
Like Liverpool, Nike are seeking to be market leaders in a this new direction, one that could see Liverpool benefit in the future given the structured nature of the deal in place and the strengthening ties that are becoming more apparent through their partnership, investments and simpatico relationship with LeBron James, the basketball icon, Liverpool fan and Fenway Sports Group partner who is Nike's most valuable client with a $1bn lifetime deal.
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