No, you’ve not misread that headline: Manchester City have taken their commercial success a step further than any club before them by becoming the first team ever to launch their own multiplayer map in a new partnership with Fortnite.
The massively popular online multiplayer game boasts well over half a billion people across the globe, with roughly 230 million active players every month, and has become well-known for its high profile collabs with big franchises like Marvel, Star Wars, Batman, Stranger Things, the NFL and more.
They even hosted a giant Travis Scott concert within an actual games lobby, which saw more than 12.3 million people log on to Fortnite to witness the gaming and live music first.
And it looks as though the game’s streak of breaking new ground isn’t stopping there as now they have teamed up with Man City to host the first-ever online map inspired by a real-life football club.
Can you be the champion of The Ladder? 🏆
Play now on Fortnite Creative! Game Code 7124-6951-4339
As part of the developer Epic Games’ Creative feature, which allows for people to build their own arenas within the smash-hit ‘battle royale’ game, players can now enjoy an officially licensed Manchester City map by entering a simple code.
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Entitled ‘The Ladder’, the map revolves around a series ‘glyphs’ or symbols of recognisable icons around the club, 11 themed arenas such as the ‘Blue Moon’ level inspired by the famous City anthem, another built around the iconic Manchester worker-bee and more.
Designed with support from Karta, a London-based metaverse studio, the map will see players take on each other in ranked one-on-one or ‘PvP’ matches, with their positions constantly changing based on their performances.
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Winners will ascend the ladder to the higher arena, while those who lose will fall further down and, in typical Fortnite fashion, a champion is crowned by being the winner of the final round.
The Fortnite creative map is the latest development in the club’s gaming and esports strategy, which has been a big area of focus for the brand in recent years, with their own Man City ESPORTS team now bigger than ever.
You can see first-team star and England international Jack Grealish taking on streamer and YouTuber ThisIsFG_ in an example below:
As per a press release from the club, the City Football Group’s (CFG) Chief Marketing and Fan Experience Officer, Nuria Tarre, said of the collab: “We are delighted to launch our official Fortnite creative map in collaboration with Epic Games for gaming and football fans around the globe to enjoy.
“The opportunity to build this world in Fortnite presented a fantastic way to increase our presence across the competitive gaming space, a natural crossover for our leading sports entertainment brand.
“This launch is a great new addition to our off-pitch fan engagement activations and we are excited to see a crossover of esports and football fans dive into this immersive City experience.
You can play ‘The Ladder’ official Man City Fortnite map via the access code: 7124-6951-4339.
Tickets go live as opening date is announced for Manchester City’s new ‘immersive’ museum experience
Emily Sergeant
Tickets to visit Manchester City’s new ‘immersive’ museum experience have officially gone live ahead of the grand opening.
Set to open in the heart of the £300m Medlock Square entertainment district at Manchester’s Etihad Campus next month, the Manchester City Museum Experience will be spread across 10 distinctive spaces – with visitors invited to take a trip down memory lane with nostalgic environments from throughout the club’s history.
Fans will also be able to take part in interactive media experiences, like posing with all 48 major trophies won by the club’s first teams or trying their hand at football punditry.
The experience will combine the latest immersive technology with physical memorabilia drawn from across the club’s history to do this.
Hidden details and surprising ‘did you know’ facts are set to be embedded across the experience, so that even the most devoted Man City fans will have the chance to discover something new about the club they love.
By combining interactive environments, technology, and authentic artefacts, the experience is aiming to appeal to a wide audience – from lifelong Manchester City supporters, to families and those with a broader interest in football, culture, and the city of Manchester.
“The Museum Experience has been designed as a destination that goes beyond just the pitch,” commented Jeremy Maxton, who is the Director of Visitor Attractions at Manchester City Football Club.
Manchester City releases CGIs and important details of its new ‘immersive’ museum / Credit: Manchester City / Ralph Appelbaum Associates (RAA)
“Whether you’re a lifelong supporter, visiting Manchester for a weekend, or simply looking for a unique day out, we’ve created an experience that offers something for everyone.
“From the recreated environments and original memorabilia to the interactive elements, there are different ways into the Club’s history throughout the Museum.
“We’ve also built in space for new stories to be added over time, so the experience can continue to evolve. It’s been a huge project to bring together and we’re looking forward to people seeing it for themselves later this year.”
The Manchester City Museum Experience officially opens on 14 December, and you can now book tickets to visit from that date here.
Featured Image – Credit: Manchester City / Ralph Appelbaum Associates (RAA)
Sport
Details released of Andy Burnham’s meetings with Manchester City owners while Mayor
Emily Sergeant
Details of Andy Burnham’s meetings with Manchester City owners during his tenure as Mayor of Greater Manchester have been released.
In case you need bringing up to speed on the situation a little first, Manchester City was found guilty back in September all of its charges related to the Premier League’s financial rules over a nine-season period, and on top of that, was also found guilty of the majority of charges in relation to its failure to co-operate with the League’s investigation.
According to the Premier League, the independent Commission found that Manchester City had arranged so-called ‘sham’ commercial deals with a number of its sponsors.
These were part of a disguised funding scheme – with those sponsors only required to pay a portion of the relevant sponsorship fees.
The remainder was then funded by Abu Dhabi United Group Investment & Development Ltd (ADUG), which owned the club.
The Commission also concluded, as quoted by the Premier League, that the club had ‘made concerted efforts to stop and frustrate the Premier League investigation’.
Within the past week or so, it has since come to light that now-Prime Minister Andy Burnham had dealings with Manchester City during his tenure as Greater Manchester Mayor, and Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA) has now issued a public statement, giving details on the matter and what these ‘dealings’ entailed.
A spokesperson for GMCA confirmed that Burnham had a ‘formal meeting’ with Man City Chairman, Khaldoon Al Mubarak, back in October 2021.
The statement reads in full: “In October 2021, Andy Burnham, in his role as Mayor of Greater Manchester, had a formal meeting with Khaldoon Al Mubarak at the UK Government’s Global Investment Summit arranged by the Department for International Trade.
“In his capacity as Mayor, he was a guest of Manchester City FC at home matches on a small number of occasions, including attending Vincent Kompany’s testimonial match in September 2019, where he met the Chairman informally in the stands. These have been declared in the usual way.
“Also during his time as Mayor, representatives of Greater Manchester sporting clubs would routinely join business delegations as part of Mayoral international visits.
“This included representatives from Manchester United travelling to Austin and Dublin, Lancashire Cricket Club joining a delegation to India, and Manchester City FC staff supporting visits to China and Japan.”
Featured Image – Lauren Hurley / Number 10 Downing Street (Press Image via Flickr)
Danny Jones -
23rd July 2024 
