[mkdf_dropcaps type=”normal” color=”#f55549″ background_color=””]T[/mkdf_dropcaps]
hree A-League clubs, along with more than 20 other football clubs from around the world, have partnered with Epic Games to bring their kits into the popular game, Fortnite.

The partnerships, which also include top European clubs such as Manchester City, West Ham, Juventus, and AC Milan, will also see a new game-mode introduced for players to interact with footballs in the game, as well as the introduction of a tournament named the Pele Cup.

Speaking of the partnerships, Epic Games head of global partnerships, Nate Nanzer, said: “Who better to kick off a global football program than one of the greatest players to ever live?”

“We’re super excited to be able to bring Pele’s famous air punch celebration into the game.

“We also have a really exciting tournament that we’re going to be running where any Fortnite player will be able to sign up and compete to try to win both outfits and the Pele emote early, prior to launch, for free,” Nanzer said.

Speaking further on the partnership to Radio 1 Newsbeat, Nanzer said these partnerships are just the beginning for Fortnite.

“We really view this as the start of what we want to do in football,” Nanzer said.

“We’ve dabbled in the past, like we did some stuff with Liverpool Football Club a few months ago, but that’s now evolved into this, and the football calendar is pretty exciting over the next couple years, so hopefully we can keep doing more.

“I think we’re constantly trying to push ourselves… and that’s why Fortnite is stronger than it’s ever been.

“Back in December we had a Marvel-themed event that set an all-time concurrent user record for us, 15.3 million people.

“So this football launch isn’t a reaction to anything other games are doing, it’s really an effort on our side to be thinking as globally as possible.

“We’re a US-based company, but what we want to do is things that resonate all over the world.

“Fortnite has hit this level of awareness globally, so we don’t have to explain to people what it is any more, so that’s a great advantage.

“But first and foremost, we’re looking for people who are going to be great collaborators, we’ve never had a situation where someone has come to us and said, ‘we’ll pay you loads of money if you put us in the game’.

“That’s literally never happened,” he said.

The three A-League clubs that joined the partnership are Sydney FC, Melbourne City FC, and Western Sydney Wanderers FC.

Sydney FC CEO and commercial lead for the Australian Professional Leagues, Danny Townsend, said: “This partnership is an awesome opportunity to showcase our clubs and leagues to Fortnite’s player base in Australia and millions more around the world.”

“We know where our audiences are, and there is a big overlap between people who love football and people who play Fortnite.

“Our clubs are taking part alongside more than 20 teams from around the world, from Man City in the English Premier League, to Santos in the Brasileirao, to MLS’ Seattle Sounders,” Townsend said.