Asian mixed martial arts promotion ONE Championship has agreed a sponsorship and technology partnership with Sui, a Layer 1 blockchain. The deal will see the company’s technology integrated into the One Fight Arena mobile game.
The deal, which is understood to have been brokered by the PinDrop Agency, will see Sui designated the official blockchain partner of ONE.
Sui is described as a Layer 1 blockchain and smart contract platform that is designed to make it easy for creators and developers to build user-friendly experiences in a fast, private and secure way.
Under the deal, Sui integrations will include a comic-manga series about ONE athletes accessible through zkLogin and powered by the Walrus protocol on Sui, a free-to-play ‘pick’em’ game where fans can win a variety of rewards and ‘phygital’ collectibles that blend physical and digital aspects.
The PinDrop agency behind the deal was founded in December 2023 by Arsenal FC’s former business development lead Sean Thornley and Menino Pereira, the club’s former head of partnerships, research and insights. The pair were jointly responsible for Arsenal’s Web3 strategy during their time with the club and have drawn on their experiences to advise brands and right-holders on how to use data and analytics in their sponsorship approaches.
Pereira said of the ONE Championship deal: “Time and again we’ve seen Web3 brands fall into the trap of hollow branding deals, with minimal tech integration or showcase. From our first call with Sui, there was a strong alignment on wanting to make sure we would develop fan products that are genuinely useful and meaningful for fans.
“One Championship proved to be a good fit, given they have a large, tech savvy audience and were already building in Web3.”
Since its formation, the PinDrop agency has rapidly expanded, adding Scottish club Rangers and Arsenal’s Premier League rivals Newcastle United to its roster of clients. The latter contract meant Thornley and Pereira were reunited with Newcastle’s chief commercial officer Peter Silverstone who also had a stint at Arsenal, first as the club’s business development director, and then as chief commercial officer, between 2015 and 2022. SportBusiness understands the agency is also working in some capacity with the Williams Formula 1 team.