Man City-Sony digital delight for fans

Article posted by Coliseum, December 8^th, 2021

Image: Manchester City

The Premier League team Manchester City F.C. (UK) has announced a new global partnership with Sony Group Corporation (Sony) which aims to develop new digital fan experiences that will be at the cutting-edge of global sport.

The ‘Manchester City’ stated that the club will conduct a PoC (proof of concept) with Sony, which will leverage Sony’s groundbreaking technologies and Manchester City’s global fan base to develop new forms of digital content.

The Manchester City Football Club is an English football club based in Manchester (UK) that competes in the Premier League, the top flight of English football. Founded in 1880 as St. Mark’s, it became Ardwick Association Football Club in 1887 and Manchester City in 1894.

The City of Manchester Stadium in Manchester, England (UK), also known as the Etihad Stadium for sponsorship reasons, is the home of Premier League club Manchester City F.C., with a domestic football capacity of 53,400, making it the fifth-largest in the Premier League and 10^th-largest in the United Kingdom.

Sony Group Corporation, commonly known as Sony and stylized as SONY, is a Japanese multinational conglomerate corporation headquartered in Kōnan, Minato, Tokyo, Japan. As a major technology company, it operates as one of the world’s largest manufacturers of consumer and professional electronic products.

The ‘Manchester City’ further stated that the aim of this collaboration is to create a global online fan community where fans can interact with the club and each other within an online ‘metaverse’ which will be a virtual recreation of the Etihad Stadium.

The Manchester City was named the ‘Most Innovative Sports Team’ in the world by the Sports Innovation Lab earlier this year and will be Sony’s first sports partner in this space, building on Sony’s successful digital fan experiences in music and the wider entertainment industries.

Remarked Nuria Tarre, Chief Marketing and Fan Experience Officer, City Football Group, “At Manchester City we have a strong pedigree of continuously embracing the latest technologies to enhance our operation – with particular focus on exploring ways to engage and entertain our global fan base. This partnership with Sony puts City at the development stage of an exciting project that will create immersive digital fan experiences that has never been seen before in football.”

Added Tarre, “We’re looking forward to launching this collaboration and bringing together Sony’s industry-leading technologies with the global network of Manchester City fans.”

Toshimoto Mitomo, Officer in Charge of Intellectual Property and Business Incubation Platform at Sony Group Corporation, added, “Through this PoC, Sony will support Manchester City to further increase the value of its content and engagement with its fans around the world. Sony aims to create an online fan engagement platform that brings the club and its global fans closer together, demonstrating our commitment to the sports entertainment business and supporting our partners in seeking new opportunities.”

The City Football Group Limited is a British-based holding company that administers association football clubs. The group is owned by three organizations, of which 78 percent is majority-owned by the Abu Dhabi United Group, 10 percent by the American firm Silver Lake and 12 percent by the Chinese firms – China Media Capital and CITIC Capital.

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