The Roma 2024 European Athletics Championships will have a "phygital" dimension, thanks to the innovative project developed by the EuroRoma 2024 Foundation (LOC) and XMetaReal, a company specialising in creating experiences, services, and content within the Metaverse.
The dream of Roma 2024 is taking shape in the digital world as well as the physical one. Starting from September, athletics fans will have a dedicated space available to them and will be able to explore the venues of the Championships, where the best European athletes will compete next summer. It will be a unique and immersive experience, never before experimented with for a sports event in Italy.
Larissa Iapichino, who won long jump gold at the recent European Athletics U23 Championships in Espoo, Finland, is the European Athletics Indoor Championships silver medallist, and triumphed with team Italy at the European Athletics Team Championships, will be the first athlete to enter the Roma 2024 Metaverse as the official ambassador of the project.
"While the countdown to next year's Championships at the Olympic Stadium has already begun, I can't wait to leap into the Roma 2024 Metaverse and use my avatar to meet other visitors. The virtual world can represent a positive opportunity to engage new people, especially the youth, in athletics disciplines, expanding the audience not only in reality.
“It will be an honour for me to participate in such an innovative project, where technology becomes a real launching pad to establish Roma 2024 as an event capable of intercepting and valorising the new trends of society," said Iapichino.
As the Metaverse Experience Supplier for Roma 2024, XMetaReal will build a new digital environment inspired by the venues that will host the athletics competitions. The Roma 2024 Metaverse will be inaugurated in September, nine months before the start of the competition, which will take place from June 7 to June 12, 2024. And with that, the space-time limits of reality will be overcome, granting the opportunity for anyone to experience Roma 2024 as if they were in the "physical" locations.
Users connected from around the world will be able to visit the Metaverse using an avatar, teleport from one place to another, take a complete tour of the Stadio Olimpico track, and get a preview of where the jump and throw platforms will be positioned during the Championships. In this way, fans of different athletics disciplines will also have a new tool to select and book the ideal seat in the Stadio Olimpico to watch their favourite events live next summer.
To explore the Roma 2024 Metaverse, fans will be able to connect using their device, while for those wearing VR headsets, specifically designed for Virtual Reality, there will be an even more immersive experience. Users will also be able to interact with digital assets and receive Roma 2024 tokens.
During the experience within the Metaverse, visitors will also be able to move among the avenues and squares around the Stadio Olimpico (Foro Italico) and visit the Commercial Village, where digital stores will be opened. This new channel made available to the event's partners amplifies and extends commercial opportunities for them over time, while waiting for the opening of physical stores at the Foro Italico during the Championships.
"The partnership with XMetaReal for the creation of the Metaverse brings a new dimension to the organisation of the Championships and will allow athletics enthusiasts to immerse themselves in a modern, interactive, and engaging space. Innovation is one of the key concepts of our plan, and with the Roma 2024 Metaverse, we will offer a unique experience to the global audience, with a strong impact,” said Paolo Carito, CEO of the EuroRoma 2024 Foundation, the LOC that organises the Roma 2024 European Athletics Championships.
"The creation of the Metaverse for Roma 2024 opens up new scenarios and new ways to experience sports in an innovative and inclusive manner. The possibility of transforming a sports event into a social event, expanding the audience and spreading the values of sports, represents the reality of today, both physical and digital,” added Vittorio Zingales, Founder and CEO of XMetaReal.
“We should be proud to have initiated such an important initiative. Embracing digital innovation in a particular field like sport truly means nurturing a mindset that looks to the future. Another leap forward towards the digital transformation of our country.”