UEFA announces blockchain-based mobile ticketing system for EURO 2020

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Europe football governing body, UEFA revealed plans to use a blockchain-based mobile ticketing system for stadium entry during the forthcoming EURO 2020 competition.

The new mobile ticketing system provides secure ticket distribution and prevents the replication and duplication of tickets. The system QR codes gets activated via Bluetooth once fans are within the stadium premises.

UEFA said, “To enhance the fan experience, tickets will be distributed to fans via a ground-breaking new blockchain-based mobile ticketing system, which will make entry into the stadium smooth, safe and secure.”

The proposed UEFA EURO 2020 mobile ticket project was first tested during the final stages of the UEFA Nations League in June 2019. For the matches, about 110,000 tickets (about 80% of the tickets available) were delivered to mobile phones for the four matches.

The European football governing body also said fans who purchased tickets for EURO 2020 in December 2019 sales phase and beyond will receive their tickets as mobile tickets via the UEFA EURO 2020 mobile tickets app. This mobile app reportedly becomes available for download in May 2020 for Android and iOS phones.

“The app will be available for download towards the end of May 2020 for Android and iOS phones. Mobile tickets will be delivered to the app no later than seven days before the match. In total, UEFA expects to deliver over one million mobile tickets to fans across all 51 matches,” the body said.

Blockchain in football

In recent times, a number of football teams have adopted the blockchain technology, showing increased adoption of the technology.

In 2019, Portuguese football club SL Benfica announced a partnership with the cryptocurrency company, UTrust. The collaboration aims at providing new payment options for fans.

European football club AS Roma reportedly partnered blockchain-based voting platform Socios to launch a fan token and provide fans with voting rights concerning club-delegated decisions. More recently, Spanish giants FC Barcelona signed a partnership with Chiliz to create a crypto token for the football club.