The Federation Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) plans to launch a new blockchain network to support its non-fungible token (NFT) collectibles, the organization announced on April 30.
FIFA will launch its “FIFA Blockchain,” with Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) compatibility and aims to provide “better performance, future features, and improved scalability.”
As part of the move, FIFA Collect — its official NFT collection — will migrate from the Algorand blockchain to the new FIFA Blockchain. The migration is scheduled to begin no earlier than May 20, FIFA said.
“At this stage, no immediate action is required. When the migration process begins, we will provide clear, step-by-step instructions on what (if anything) you need to do,” the announcement stated.
The collection’s migration will take place “not earlier than” May 20, FIFA said, adding that it will confirm the exact date and provide clear instructions for NFT holders.
Following the migration, external Algorand-based wallets such as Pera and Defly will no longer be supported. Instead, users will be able to connect to FIFA Collect via MetaMask or other EVM wallets that support WalletConnect.
Other listed collectibles will be automatically listed on the new platform, unless users delist them before the migration date.
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FIFA signals growing interest in NFTs, Web3 gaming
FIFA launched its NFT collection ahead of the 2023 Club World Cup in Saudi Arabia in collaboration with blockchain firm Modex.
In November 2024, FIFA partnered with blockchain gaming studio Mythical Games to launch FIFA Rivals, a free-to-play soccer game for iOS and Android.
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The full game is scheduled to be released in the summer of 2025, enabling players to manage their own football clubs and compete against other players in real-time. FIFA Rivals is set to launch a pre-release in May 2025.
The company’s CEO, John Linden, said FIFA Rivals could attract over 100 million gamers, given that its NFL Rivals game has already seen over 6 million players sign up from a far narrower audience.
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