Quick take:
- Kylian Mbappé’s charity IBKM and Sorare will partner on Web3-related social impact initiatives
- The deal is Mbappé’s first foray into the Web3 space.
- Sorare will provide training, a special diploma and more for the youth that IBKM works with.
French fantasy football game and NFT trading card platform, Sorare, today announced that football star Kylian Mbappé is joining the company as investor and exclusive player ambassador. He is Sorare’s first football player ambassador and the deal represents Mbappé’s first foray into Web3.
A World Cup winner, Mbappé is one of football’s greatest talents. The 23-year-old is also a philanthropist as he has his own non-profit venture, Inspired By KM (IBKM), which provides Web3 technology education to disadvantaged youth.
In this partnership, Sorare will support IBKM and provide the organisation with training, conferences, equipment, and a special diploma for the young people IBKM works with. Sorare will also auction a rare Mbappé digital card, with all of the proceeds going to the charity.
“Off the pitch, the most important thing for me is helping empower young people – who might not have access to the type of opportunities others have – to realise and fulfill their dreams and potential. And with new technologies presenting such profound opportunities, I wanted to partner with an ambitious, global tech brand that would resonate with the young people whose dreams we’re supporting,” said Kylian Mbappé.
Mbappé’s deal with Sorare comes shortly after he signed a new contract with Paris Saint-Germain. The football team recently made its own entry into Web3 with a new trademark application and a metaverse project with Taiwanese pop singer, Jay Chou.
The football star joins Sorare during a time of the platform’s rapid expansion and growth. Last year, Sorare was valued at $4.3 billion after raising $680 million in a Series B funding round led by SoftBank’s Vision Fund 2. It also recently closed its first partnership outside of football with Major League Baseball.
“Kylian Mbappé is one of the most talented, celebrated and recognisable athletes in modern sports. He is a true football icon and will undeniably be one of the most important figures in world football for years to come. And like Sorare, he has limitless ambition, he’s fast-moving on and off the pitch, he has a truly global reach, and he is committed to enacting positive change in the world,” said Nicolas Julia, CEO and co-founder at Sorare. “We’re thrilled to have Kylian join Sorare on our journey to connect millions of sports fans worldwide with their favourite athletes in innovative new ways.”
Mbappé joins other world-famous athletes such as Serena Williams and Spanish footballer Gerard Piqué andRio Ferdinand as Sorare’s backers. Serena Williams joined the company as a board advisor in January.
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