UK Gambling Commission launches enquiry into Sorare
Sorare says it is “very confident” that it does not offer any form of regulated gambling
The UK Gambling Commission is carrying out an enquiry into French non-fungible token (NFT) football trading card game developer, Sorare.
The UK gambling watchdog warned consumers that Sorare is not licensed by the Commission and so any activity in the UK “is outside of the gambling regulations that a licensed operator should comply with”.
The Gambling Commission said it wants “establish whether Sorare.com requires an operating licence or whether the services it provides do not constitute gambling.”
The watchdog further said consumers should “consider this information when deciding whether or not to interact with the site.”
Sorare’s response
Sorare responded to the enquiry by stating it is “very confident” that it does not offer any form of regulated gambling. The French NFT football trading card game developer said this view has been confirmed by expert legal opinion at every stage of the company being founded.
However, the company stressed that it is willing to cooperate with the UK Gambling Commission and said: “We will always engage and have an open dialogue with authorities who reach out to us to learn more about our game. We believe this is the responsible way to grow our game and community globally.”
Sorare believes it is receiving this attention from the gambling watchdog as “when a product with a nascent technology becomes successful, such as Sorare’s digital collectable cards and game, it is normal and expected to be regulatory questions.”
The company wished to add that its platform allows football fans to celebrate their passion “in a unique way”.
Bundesliga and LaLiga deals
Recently, the Bundesliga and Bundesliga 2 – the top two tiers in the German football league system – have partnered with Sorare to launch NFTs of their players.
The sale of these NFTs is set to start in October. Fans will be able to purchase NFTs of their favourite football players from the German league. If enough NFTs are collected, the purchaser can also create virtual teams.
LaLiga, the top professional division of the Spanish football league system, also partnered with Sorare in September to launch NFTs for its players.
Sorare says its mission is to build “the game within the game”, and that it hopes to partner with every one of the world’s top 20 football leagues by the end of 2022.
