NetEase
Chinese game publisher NetEase announced a “player cards” merchandise plan for its first esports franchise league: Identity V League (IVL). The player cards feature all IVL 2021 season’s star players and will start selling online today. NetEase told Sports Business Journal that the “player cards” merchandise plan was inspired by NBA trading cards like the Panini Flawless Logoman line, and it will share revenue with teams and players.
The English Premier League team Wolverhampton Wanderers (Wolves) was the champion of the IVL 2021 Summer Split. The player card of its Final-MVP player He “487” Tianshun is one of a tiny minority of “UTR” (ultimate rare) cards in the package.
In addition, the IVL 2022 Summer Split will be held Aug. 18-21, with live audiences, at Hangzhou Esports Center, the venue that will also host the Hangzhou Asian Games esports competitions next year. The IVL player cards will be also sold alongside the event.
Player cards are an iconic commercial strategy that esports could learn from traditional sports. In July 2021, a 2009-10 Stephen Curry autographed player card sold for $5.9 million, making it the most expensive basketball card ever sold.
Identity V (or IV, for short) is an asymmetrical horror-themed mobile game developed by NetEase. It’s part of the Asymmetrical Battle Arena (ABA) genre, which is like Behaviour Interactive’s PC hit Dead by Daylight.
