Budweiser Partners with Zed Run to Race in NFT Games

The two will launch a Budweiser-themed racetrack, NFT Budweiser passes, racing prize pools starting at $45,000, and three levels of air-dropped NFT Clydesdale skins usable in Zed Run.

Popular beer maker Budweiser has partnered with Zed Run to deploy tokenized Clydesdale draft horses in its NFT-based virtual horse racing and wagering game.

Budweiser’s latest move comes on top of the $120,000 it spent on non-fungible tokenized fan art and the beer.eth domain name it purchased through the Ethereum naming service in August 2021.

Zed Run was founded by Sydney-based Virtually Human Studio in early 2019, and its racehorse NFTs initially sold for around $30 to $80 to mint, but have since become highly sought-after assets trading for thousands of dollars on secondary markets. One user sold a single racehorse for as much as $125,000 in April 2021.

What does the partnership include?

As part of the Zed Run deal, the two companies will launch a Budweiser-themed racetrack, Budweiser NFT passes, prize purses for Bud-sponsored virtual horse races starting at $45,000, and three levels of air-dropped Clydesdale NFT skins that can be used in Zed Run.

Budweiser’s Clydesdales are a well-known group of horses used for company promotions and advertisements, and the brewers are a major sponsor of horse racing around the world.

On 9 June 2022, There will be 2,500 total Budweiser Pass NFTs that will go on sale (for users 21 and older) for up to 24 hours starting Friday. NFTs will cost $225 each, plus gas costs.

Zed Run will host two Budweiser Racing Challenges in July and September, both with a prize purse of $45,000. There will also be a $95,000 tournament in December that also offers a chance to win a year’s worth of Budweiser beer.

NFT players will receive NFTs of Cyldesdale skins in July that they can use to dress up existing racehorse NFTs in the game, and will also receive Budweiser T-shirts that avatars can wear in the Decentraland metaverse, where Zed Run’s virtual headquarters is located.

The duo is releasing three different versions of the NFT horse racing skins in varying quantities: 1,600 classic Clydesdales, 800 beer bottle Clydesdales and 100 gold Clydesdales.

Upon completion of all tournaments, the project will also offer rewards to those who burn their Budweiser NFT pass; however, details have not yet been revealed.

Spencer Gordon, vice president of consumer connections at AB InBev – the producer of Budweiser beer – said the move is “an example of how we are constantly innovating and leveraging new technologies, such as NFTs, to create memorable experiences for fans and reinforce our brand.”

Zed Run also allows users to bet on virtual races, trade NFTs and breed new tokenized racehorses by mating stallions or foals with fillies and mares.

Budweiser and Zed Run Roadmap

On launch day, Budweiser Hippodrome will make its Zed Run debut. This venue will host many major racing activations and become a staple in the digital horse racing game.

In July 2022, Budweiser Pass holders will receive a ZED RUN racehorse design from one of three rarity levels. Gold, Budweiser Bottle and Clydesdale appearances will be randomly distributed.

There will also be several challenges and tournaments with up to $95,000 in prizes. They will start in July and end with the big tournament in December.

All pass holders will receive an exclusive Budweiser and ZED RUN Decentraland T-shirt. Just in case your avatars get jealous of all the attention the horses get.

The Budverse 2022 roadmap seems to be going according to plan so far.