Sports and video games have a long history together. Pong, the groundbreaking arcade game released in 1972, was inspired by tennis with its two paddles and a ball.

Almost 30 years ago, football and video games collided. And the results were fantastic. You could control players on the screen, which was simply magical. Over the years, these titans of industry kept steadily polishing the graphics, improving the physics, and improving the overall immersiveness, even as the core gameplay remains largely the same year to year.

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But something has been missing. Ownership.

Collectibles have been intertwined into the fan experience of sports, whether in the form of jerseys or cards. Underpinning all that is ownership. We have all experienced the thrill of that treasure hunt. Finding that elusive item, which can take minutes, days, or sometimes years or decades. And when ownership is transferred from one person to another, that's true joy. Ownership creates emotions.

Games are about emotions. Layer on ownership, and you create a much more powerful experience.

Imagine building your squad, with digital cards of your favorite footballers (we all know we can do better than our club's manager 😉). This time, you truly own your squad and your cards - no one is taking it away from you every year. Now imagine bringing that squad into different games, whether it's a two minute game your phone, or a full blown simulation on your console.

That's what we're building at Matchday. We have started building category defining games for football's five billion fans. And we want you, the community, to build alongside us. Join us now.

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