Northzone feeds, Pique assists, GOALS takes the shot, scores $15 million

Stockholm-based online football title GOALS has raised $15 million in a seed round led by Northzone. The fresh boots are aimed at assisting the company in doubling the club size, bringing up 30 game developers to the majors by years’ end. To date, GOALS has scored $19 million.

Available on both PC and consoles, GOALS is similar in fashion to Footium in so much as it’s a multiplayer football game that provides for players to earn and own in-game digital assets.

Harnessing blockchain technologies, these in-game assets can be earned for free through gameplay, and, crucially, traded at any point. With the estimated market for virtual goods in the football sector pushing close to $190 billion, it's safe to say that GOALS is operating on a red-hot pitch.

“We have been in the very fortunate position where investors reached out to us before we were actually fundraising so we were able to pick the ones we felt had the best fit for GOALS,” commented co-founder and CEO Andreas Thorstensson. “After playing most football games on the market and observing the esports scene for a long time I could see that gamers deserved something new. GOALS is a gameplay-first football game. Free to play, cross-play, multiplayer-focused, and esports-ready where the players can finally own their in-game items instead of renting them.”

GOALS’ $15 million seed round was led by Northzone with existing investors Cherry Ventures, Moonfire Ventures, Banana Capital, and new investors Not Boring Capital and Cassius participating. Rounding out the lineup, angel investors include Sorare CEO Nicolas Julia, FC Barcelona star Gerard Pique, and Axie Infinity COO Aleksander Larsen.

“GOALS is not just a game, but a team on a mission,” commented pre-seed lead Cherry Ventures’ Sophia Bendz. “In just a few short weeks, GOALS grew its following to well over 25,000 people on social media and thousands upon thousands in Discord. GOALS is creating something people have long wanted.”