LALIGA North America and Panini America Continue and Expand their Partnership to Grow Fan Engagement in the US, through eSports, with the US Gaming Challenge

LALIGA North America announced today the continuation and expansion of their partnership with Panini America. Following multiple successful years of partnership, both entities are excited to continue working together and creating special opportunities for fan engagement and interaction with top LALIGA players and other athletes, through LALIGA North America’s US Gaming Challenge. 

Competing on EA Sports FC 25, fans in North America will have a chance to win their way to the Grand Finale, which this year will take place in the US. The winner of the Grand Finale will win a “money can’t buy” experience to fly to Spain and attend a LALIGA match in the 2025/26 season. As part of the US Gaming Challenge, LALIGA fans will once again have the opportunity to compete against LALIGA superstars, and athletes from other sports leagues like the NBA, NFL, LIV Golf, and NASCAR. This award-winning program will be revamped, including more prizes, and opportunities to win Panini collectibles. Previous editions saw amateur gamers compete virtually against the likes of LALIGA and  USMNT stars Yunus Musah & Luca de la Torre and other LALIGA greats like Luis Suárez, João Félix, Fernando Morientes, Luis Garcia, and Iker Casillas, as well as NFL stars Garrett Wilson, and Aidan Hutchinson. This partnership has already provided fans in North America with a once-in-a-lifetime experience, as Real Madrid legend Guti stopped by the Panini Prizm Lounge  during Super Bowl Week, to meet and interact with fans in New Orleans.

“The US Gaming Challenge has become a key feature of our annual calendar, and we’re ecstatic to continue to grow our partnership with Panini America,” said Patrick Lowe, Head of Partnerships of LALIGA North America. “Our fans have continually made it clear they love the opportunity to get closer to the stars of LALIGA and, through partnerships like this one with Panini America, we’re delighted to be able to make that a reality.”

“We are excited to continue our fantastic partnership with LALIGA North America” said Jason Howarth, Senior Vice President of Marketing and Athlete Relations at Panini America. “Expanding on our long term partnership, introducing products, talent and innovative elements of the Panini America ecosystem in conjunction the world’s best soccer league was a no-brainer, and we continue to be excited by the project of bringing fans in North America closer to everything Panini has to offer and  LALIGA’s biggest stars leveraging the US Gaming Challenge.”

LALIGA North America, a joint venture between LALIGA and Relevent Sports, is committed to esports as a tool for audience growth in the United States. In the fifth year of the US gaming challenge presented by Panini, the contest will bring together the Panini collectibles brand, with its wide variety of products, including trading cards, an NFT Blockchain platform, merchandise, and much more, with the world’s top soccer league. This extended and renewed partnership represents an opportunity for both sides to engage and attract new consumers and fans and further cements LALIGA and Panini’s ongoing commitment to engage with young, diverse, and multicultural audiences outside the 90 minutes of a soccer match.