An earlier version of this story wrote that WTS Travel and Tours was the official tour partner of the LaLiga-GCOX partnership. That was incorrect, as GCOX has inked two separate partnerships with LaLiga and WTS Travel respectively. The article has since been updated.
Spanish football league LaLiga announced a partnership with licensed crypto Exchange GCOX yesterday to develop a range of exclusive LaLiga-themed products and experiences – including tours – purchasable through a crypto token.
The LaLiga Football Experience Token, which does not yet have a launch date, will be developed by GCOX. Among its potential product list will be football-related tours organised by WTS Travel and Tours.
These tours, which will be developed through a separate partnership between GCOX and WTS, may feature perks from visits to LaLiga stadiums, ambassador meet-and-greets, as well as match tickets, said Voo Wei Keong, director of WTS Travel and Tours. He added that these football-themed tours will also be combined with visits to popular holiday hotspots and gastronomical adventures.
“We’ve been in talks with GCOX since May, and we’ve been exploring how we can be a partner who organises tours (for the cryptocurrency community),” disclosed Voo.
Jeffrey Lin, CEO of GCOX, agreed that these “bespoke tour packages” will explore both LaLiga-related attractions, as well as destinations in Spain.
He expressed: “Travel and football are two very big industries, with fans around the world. But when we look within the Singapore context, no tour operators specialise in that because it’s so difficult (to arrange). Fans who want to attend matches in Spain have to make their own arrangements there. This is a new business segment that operators can penetrate with the help of blockchain.”
Lin observed: “Looking at how industries are moving, it seems likely that more companies will go into blockchain technology. It may not necessarily be crypto tokens, but how they store and protect data.
“For the travel industry, more and more vendors are accepting cryptocurrency because it is a straightforward, fast and safe transaction, especially for countries that they have never thought of reaching before, such as Africa and Latin America. All of these ‘unbankable’ countries now have a medium of transaction.”
On working with blockchain technology, WTS’ Voo told TTG Asia: “Blockchain is still a new technology to us, and we’re still learning how we can incorporate it into our business.”
The GCOX-WTS partnership complements the growing popularity of sports tourism in Asia, where the demand is rising for fan merchandise and experiences beyond game tickets and official apparel. Lin observed that football tourism is especially strong in Thailand and Japan.
Meanwhile, the LaLiga-GCOX partnership, which covers Asia and the Middle East, will also offer other “Money Can’t Buy Experiences” such as football clinics, pre-season fixtures against local clubs, events with LaLiga ambassadors and exclusive access to games.
In addition, the LaLiga Football Experience Token will enable token holders to auction and bid for league tours; hospitality and retail services; as well as engagements with football players and clubs.
