07 Nov 2022
Warner Bros. and Infinite Reality launch metaverse experiences for live sports fans
BY Frances Marcellin
Warner Bros. Discovery Sports (WBD Sports) and metaverse services provider Infinite Reality have entered into a multi-year agreement that will deliver new immersive and interactive metaverse experiences to sports fans.
The scope of what’s on offer – described as “new avenues for sports communities, athletes and brands to interact with each other within unique virtual environments” – can be experienced and previewed for the first time at the UCI Track Champions League.
The deal – which confirms Infinite Reality as the exclusive metaverse partner of WBD Sports – is expected to increase user engagement and bring in new audiences with fans being able to interact with athletes, retail outlets and brands. It is the first time WBD Sports has worked with Web3 technology on a European sports property.
“Our partnership with Infinite Reality outlines how we plan to embrace the latest innovations and opportunities to deepen the connections between our audiences, owned series and brand partners to discover possibilities for new growth areas around different sports properties,” said François Ribeiro, head of Discovery Sports Events.
“We're excited by the potential to engage new audiences around live sport in different ways, extending the experience beyond the live environment and into even more places where people are interacting and spending time.
“Over the coming years, by breaking new ground in metaverse experiences around live sports events, we'll aim to empower fans to engage with sport in new and exciting ways. We see the preview during the UCI Track Champions League as an outstanding opportunity to open new avenues for storytelling and fan engagement, providing key learnings as we look to extend our partnership to other assets of Discovery Sports Events’ portfolio.”
The debut experience at the UCI Track Champions League – a new series launched last year to elevate track cycling as a spectator experience – will give a flavour of what’s to come from future Discovery Sports Events properties.
John Acunto, CEO of Infinite Reality said: “This is the beginning of connecting amazing content with audiences in unique and immersive ways. We can’t wait to see fans' excitement while engaging with UCI Track Champions League, bringing them closer to the sport they love in a new and revolutionary way.”
The UCI Track Champions League can be viewed on WBD Sports’ platforms, including discovery+, Eurosport and GCN+. The first round starts on 12 November in Mallorca.
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