FC Barcelona has partnered with Blockchain platform Chiliz to create a digital token for fan engagement.
Announced on Thursday, the digital currency is named Barça Fan Tokens ($BAR) and will allow the massive fan base of the football club supporters to take part in polls and surveys on the blockchain platform's social mobile app Socios.
"We are proud to welcome Chiliz to the Barça family as a new global partner. This agreement will give us the chance to set up innovative Marketing and partnership activations with a clear focus on the digital realm to take the Club closer to our fans around the world," Josep Pont, a board member and head of commercial at FC Barcelona, said.
This move is also a part of the football giant's global expansion strategy as it is building new digital media for fan engagement.
He also outlined that, with this partnership, the football club is also exploring "new commercial and digital strategy, with the development of new streams for the generation of resources helping to make us a benchmark both on and off the field,"
Forty million tokens will be available in the market in the second quarter of this year, and each will cost at €2 ( around $2.18) in the initial point of sale. Per the announcement, the tokens will be listed on multiple exchanges for distribution; however, it did not specify any names.
A sports club with millions of fans
FC Barcelona is one of the biggest football clubs in the world. It won numerous titles both in domestic and international competitions with millions of followers across the globe.
Just last month, the football club signed a deal with FBS, a broker-dealer, to become its official trading partner, Finance Magnates reported.
"We are very excited to welcome FC Barcelona to Socios.com, and even more excited to start engaging with their massive fan base around the world," Alexandre Dreyfus, founder and CEO of both Socios.com and Chiliz, said.
"With over 300 million fans worldwide, Barça's fandom spans countries as well as cultures...Every time a fan downloads the app, we are furthering education, and every time a fan buys a Fan Tokens, we are strengthening the use cases of this innovative technology."
