Have the NFL found a new licensing category?

& McDonalds bring Genshin Impact to the USA + Australian Open launch challenge for schools on Minecraft

Author

Joe Condon
September 17, 2024

Welcome back to edition #27 of the report!

Today we’ll be diving into the NFL partnering with Voldex for NFL Universe Football, and the ramifications this could have on traditional sim sports games licensing; McDonald’s collaboration with HoYoverse for a Genshin Impact themed meals & in-game items, as well as the Australian Open launching a competition for students to build the AO precinct on Minecraft.

Contents: Edition #27

Let’s get into it…

The NFL & Voldex team up for NFL Universe Football 

Voldex, a game developer across UGC platforms and owners of Ultimate Football, have teamed up with the NFL to bring all 32 teams, team uniforms and more to Ultimate Football, which has been aptly renamed to ‘NFL Universe Football’.

Why you should care?

As Ed Kiang, VP of Video Gaming @ the NFL said in the release, the NFL has had a strong and consistent presence on Roblox since 2022, with Super NFL Tycoon which was developed alongside the studio Gamefam. This experience (at time of writing) has a 90% approval rate and over 21.5 million visits over its lifetime, with the tycoon style of game being popular for a number of sports experiences in the past (e.g. NASCAR Tycoon).

So why is the NFL partnering with Voldex newsworthy if they’re already in Roblox you ask?

Well, NFL Universe Football is a simulation game.

Sim games have until now been a no-go area for many sports brands given their long standing partnerships with larger game publishers, like EA Sports & Take-Two Interactive/2K Games, who have the exclusive rights to produce simulation games. In the NFL’s case, this is the Madden franchise with EA Sports.

And for good reason sim games have been off limits - with the Madden franchise reportedly worth a cool $600 million dollars annually, with the licensing deal supposedly worth around $250 million dollars annually to the NFL.

So given the value of the current deal, the length of the partnership and the sole rights EA have to develop NFL simulation games (until 2026), the only explanation of this Voldex partnership is that EA green lighted it.

Which you’d assume means that UGC game platforms are either:

A) Not within the scope of the contract given it was signed in 2020 (although this is unlikely given they have sole rights)

B) Not seen as competitive by a publisher like EA

Either way, this is a HUGE deal.

It means that what has traditionally been an all encompassing rights agreement of ‘all simulation sports’ across any platform may well be now up for discussion.

*Cue sports brands scrambling to arrange calls with EA/2K to see if they’re able to follow suit*

And so they should. If the precedent is that UGC gaming platforms are seen as separate, it would allow sports brands to unlock a number of new licensing deals across the gaming ecosystem without infringing on their flagship partnerships with the large publishers. It’s a win-win.

Although this would be an undoubted win for sports brands, I am left with a few questions:

  1. Why would EA allow their exclusivity to not span UGC games given its popularity?

  2. Will the UGC games cannibalise/dilute the Madden brand in the long run?

  3. What restrictions have the NFL put in place that allowed the partnership to be passed?

The only way I can rationalise some of those questions above are that:

  1. Perhaps UGC games were not explicitly factored into the renewal contract in 2020, and the NFL have been able to carve it out as a new category.

  2. EA perhaps see NFL Universe Football as a way to grow the interest in simulation games of American Football, and are hoping / working with the NFL so that when the audience grows up, they’ll graduate to play Madden.

  3. Perhaps the workaround is that given NFL Universe Football is a 6v6 game, it isn’t ‘match-like’ so EA are happy for it to exist alongside Madden.

In any case, it is a major development, and with sports brands being licensing machines, I fully expect we’ll be writing about more sports brands that follow the NFL’s lead and license their IP into sim UGC games over the coming months.

(For more on this topic, I recommend checking out Naavik’s Gaming Podcast, where SEG3 LA alumni David Taylor & Super League’s Matt Edelman chat with Voldex on their approach to licensing and working with big brands)

McDonalds launch Genshin Impact Collab in US

McDonalds partner up with HoYoverse, creators of Genshin Impact, for a special McDonald’s-themed promotion, which will see participants be able to unlock exclusive, limited edition McDonalds meals, whilst also being rewarded with in-game items.

Why You Should Care

Genshin Impact may be a new name to some of you. For the uninitiated, it’s a free-to-play open-world adventure role-playing game (RPG) that has players exploring the world of Teyvat to discover the fate of their lost sibling.

And it's been a hit. Dexerto reports there have been close to 64 million MAUs (63,644,932 to be exact!), which surpasses the MAUs of popular titles like Apex Legends, Rocket League & more.

So although ‘niche’ to some, the numbers tell a different story.

And this is a recurring theme we’re seeing with subcultures having much more impact (excuse the pun!) and reach than they’re perhaps given credit for across the mainstream.

Which makes McDonalds collaboration a very smart move. 

So, what does it entail? 👇

The TL;DR on the video/campaign:

  1. Over a limited timeframe (Sept. 17 until Sept. 29)

  2. Only available in the US

  3. Physical behaviour rewarded with in-game digital items

With the length of the campaign being just shy of 2 weeks, this is likely an experiment to test the waters to see how the US market responds to Genshin Impact. For an existing fan, the value exchange seems good - with powerups and swag available in-game like ‘Primogems, Golden Apple Pastries, a special Wind Glider, an exclusive name card and more’.

With supposedly 20% of the games players being stateside, the key metrics will be what redemption rates of the promotion are from the existing fanbase at McDonalds and whether McDonalds can attract new fans to the franchise.

If there is success in this trial, there may well be cause to roll it out globally, or to other territories where fans are situated.

From a quick glance at Reddit, there is definitely frustration from fans that this promotion is geolocked to the US, with a number of fans ordering from the McDonalds app just to receive the in-game items.

So, the takeaway? (not the apple pies!)

We’re now consistently seeing a number of initiatives from brands that focus on blending physical and digital experiences/commerce, and as social situations continue to take place in both environments, consumers are becoming more open and expectant to being rewarded for their fandom & behaviour IRL in the digital world and vice versa, with the bond loyalty report finding that 85% of consumers say they are willing to engage with brands digitally if they believe they will be rewarded either through physical or virtual goods.

So the direction of travel certainly seems to be that the next-generation of fandom will be unlocked by incentivising and rewarding fans for interacting and spending with your brand across your channels and with your partners.

I guess we’ll all be talking about loyalty programs even more over the coming months & years…

Australian Open launch Minecraft Challenge

The Australian Open and Australian Esports League has launched The AO Schools Block Buster Tennis Challenge, which invites students from years 4-11 to redesign the Australian Open precinct using Minecraft Education. Participants can win prizes valued at over $25,000, including tickets to the AO25 Finals, custom trophies, and gaming gear.

Why should you care?

For any brand looking to engage and grow interest in their sport amongst Gen Z/A, educational partnerships should be on the agenda, but it often feels slightly neglected as part of a typical marketing strategy, so kudos to AO & AEL for building this initiative.

Ridley Plummer, Tennis Australia’s Senior Manager of Digital Sales & Metaverse had the below to say about the initiative:

Students (including home-schooled students) will use their creativity and problem-solving skills to design a future AO precinct that not only meets the environmental challenges we face, but also enhances the experience for players, fans, and the community.

By focusing on sustainable practices, climate considerations, and cutting-edge technologies, this challenge encourages students to think big, innovate, and push the boundaries of what’s possible.

A couple of quick thoughts on this and it’s transferability across wider industry:

  1. The initiative focusing on STEM & utilising Minecraft as the platform

  2. Crowdsourcing creativity of GenZ/A to solve real-life challenges

STEM & Minecraft

In this day and age, it is impossible to escape technology, so educating the next generation to make sure they have STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering & Mathematics) skills is imperative.

And the best way to learn STEM topics? By doing!

Dale's Cone of Experience

I mean, doing science experiments was the best part of school, right?

By leveraging Minecraft, a platform that many students will be aware of (if not, actively engaging with in their spare time), the participating schools and AO are making learning more interactive and fun, hitting that 90% retention bracket for their students.

And the project is not just an invention - it’s an ongoing challenge for AO to continue to make their precinct more sustainable, which brings me onto point 2.

Crowdsourcing creativity of GenZ/A to solve real-life challenges

Given there are no physical restrictions in virtual environments, students imaginations can run free, whilst also being able to test different layouts/structures to test their feasibility.

The dream scenario? One idea helps AO to spot a potential improvement/blindspot that could be implemented or fixed.

As much as I don’t think we’re likely to see students replace consultants to help improve businesses any time soon, we are moving into a world where fans want more of a say into their favourite brands and sports, so initiatives like this could be an interesting way to crowdsource innovative ideas and reward your audience for helping to solve challenges.

In other news this week…

A quick round-up of other stories you should be across from the past 7 days:

Working on anything cool, or have a press release you would like us to cover? Send it in for the chance for it to be covered in next week’s edition!

That’s all for now folks - thanks for reading the latest edition of The SEG3 Report!

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