Penguins and the first home win
Castellón secured their first win of the season at Castalia against Tenerife (2-1) last week, and a first-of-its-kind deal with Pudgy Penguins added to the excitement.
Raúl Sánchez was the protagonist on Sunday, as Castellón overcame Tenerife at Castalia to secure their first home win of the season, but the rest of the week felt distinctly Antarctic, as the albinegros announced an innovative partnership with NFT project and community Pudgy Penguins, which will see a flightless bird feature on their shorts, and potentially the shirts, going forward.
Taking flight on the pitch
After picking up only one point from their first three home games, the pressure had been building to get a result at Castalia, and this time the team delivered. It was not an easy game by any means - Tenerife were bottom, but certainly have a squad that should be performing much higher. Fresh off a managerial change, the side that turned up to Castalia was in a better place than the one that had started the season up until that point.
It was a game that Castellón dominated in spells, but where Tenerife also caused the home side a lot of problems, and Gonzalo Crettaz had to be majestic - as usual - especially in the closing stages.
However it was Raúl Sánchez who really stood out throughout the game, and the winger was the one spearheading Castellón’s attack. More than getting the opening goal after 20 minutes (a simple header from close range after a shot from Douglas was cleared off the line), he was tireless on his wing, and also provided a beautiful assist for Jetro Willems’s winning goal, as the former Dutch international was able turn the ball in from close range. Sánchez led the team in tackles and had the most touches of any offensive player on either team with 55.
Willems was once again impactful off the bench after replacing Jozhua at the 65-minute-mark. A player with his physical presence is hard to come by, and with his fitness now in a good place, he has made a big contribution and will look to get a chance in Dick Schreuder’s starting XI sooner rather than later.
For the Canarians, Luismi did much of the damage, initially hitting the bar with a well struck free kick before indirectly assisting the equaliser, after beating three Castellón defenders. Their number 11 also forced a fantastic save by Gonzalo in added time, the Argentine getting down well with a strong hand to turn his curling effort around the post.
The albinegros will now look to record consecutive wins for the first time this season as they head to Eldense, a side that finished just ahead of them in Primera RFEF two seasons ago.
Taking flight off the pitch
Penguins may not fly, but they certainly seem to have given Castellón some wings, if the win against Tenerife is anything to go by. Because before the game on Sunday, there was maybe an even bigger announcement - the Pudgy Penguins x Castellón collaboration.
The world of football and NFTs has seen a lot of activity of the last few years, but the deal struck by Voulgaris and Alberto González that will see a Pudgy Penguin appear on Castellón’s shorts and potentially shirts is the first of its kind and very different from anything we have seen so far.
Until now, the involvement of football clubs with NFTs was their IP heading to the blockchain. Whether it’s Sorare (fantasy football with tradable player NFT tokens), or Socios (buying “shares” in clubs which allow the holder certain perks), it was always the club’s branding being leveraged. The project at Crawley Town - where the takeover of the club was funded through NFTs - has also been interesting to follow, and somewhat successful. But this deal sees original NFT IP head onto the shirts, in what is more of a collaboration than a traditional sponsorship deal.
Pudgy Penguins was started by a group of university students in 2021 as a collection of 8,888 unique NFTs, and was later taken over by Luca Schnetzler in 2022. It has gone from strength to strength, with a large community and now even featuring a range of collectible figures that are sold in Walmart amongst other merch. With a strong presence on Instagram and a number of influencer collaborations, the floor (cheapest price you can buy one) was around $27,000 at the time of writing.
Depending on much money the project can raise to contribute to its Castellón collaboration, there’s a chance that some matchday shirts could also feature the penguins. In order to achieve this, a limited edition NFT was launched which will give holders the chance to feature their penguin on the team’s shorts at some point later this campaign.
If there is ever an example of a “win-win” partnership, then this is it. Pudgy Penguins gets mainstream exposure in a market where they would have been previously unheard of, and the chance for their project to potentially feature front and center in LaLiga games in the future, if the club’s plans come to fruition. While seeing a Pudgy Penguin going in for tackle on Kylian Mbappe probably won’t be for this season, working with Castellón gives them a fantastic opportunity going forward.
For the albinegros, besides the obvious financial benefits, they also gain massive exposure internationally, and become the new favourite club of community of almost two million people. The over 13,000 holders of either a Pudgy Penguin or a Lil Pudgy (the sister collection) will likely end up buying club merch, and maybe even paying Castalia a visit for a game in person.
Ultimately, it’s two incredibly strong communities coming together, and it will be fun to see long term how the collaboration develops. Spanish football has certainly never seen anything like it, and neither has an original NFT project.