Laliga, the premier soccer league organization in Spain, has announced a partnership with Globant, an Argentine software giant, to bring Web3 and metaverse experiences to its fans. The partnership will combine Globant’s tech resources with Laliga’s tech division in order to build products to expand the reach of the organization in the digital realm.
Laliga Enlists Globant’s Aid to Build Its Metaverse Stack
Big sports organizations are getting closer to the digital world as a way of reaching new fans and offering new interaction possibilities for their users. Laliga, the premier soccer league organization in Spain, recently announced a partnership that will serve to expand the digital reach of the company. The organization partnered with Globant, a Buenos Aires-based software giant, to build metaverse and Web3 experiences for current fans and new users.
These new additions would come to complement the current digital offer of Laliga’s tech division, which currently includes fantasy gaming, web design and development, and other areas. The press release describing agreement hints at the possible development of games using these new technologies. However, no concrete product was announced directly as a result of the partnership.
Oscar Mayo, executive director of Laliga, stated:
LaLiga Tech was created to help sports and entertainment accelerate their digital transformation, and the surge in demand we have seen shows that this remains a core priority for the industry. Partnering with Globant will allow us to continue this growth at a global scale while creating the most immersive and valuable technologies for our clients.
Laliga’s Metaverse Movements
Laliga is one of the sports league organizations that has been making several movements to digitize part of its operations. This month, the company partnered with Ethereum-based metaverse platform Decentraland to offer licensed IP experiences in one of the parcels available in its metaverse. In the same way, the organization recently launched its own app, called MAS, that includes blockchain tech to protect the identity of its fans.
Also, the company has been entering into the traditional game asset market, offering licensed products in Mojang’s block game Minecraft. In the game, users will be able to purchase a skin pack to equip any character with jerseys of the different teams present in Laliga’s roster.
Laliga has also presented NFT-based projects before. In 2021, it established a partnership with Dapper Labs, creators of NBA Top Shots and Cryptokitties, in order to issue NFTs depicting the best moments in the story of the league.
Barcelona star signing Robert Lewandowski has added to his La Liga-leading scoring total after his brace against Elche in Matchweek 6 (total of eight goals in six La Liga appearances). It was his fifth straight La Liga match with a goal.
The Polish international is currently ahead of Celta Vigo’s Iago Aspas, who continues to hang around. The Spaniard scored in the first four matchdays of the season, but has not netted since. That allowed Real Betis center forward Borja Iglesias to leap him into second place with a two-goal performance against Girona before the international break.
La Liga odds to win Golden Boot
Who do the sportsbooks think is the frontrunner for the top scorer title in Spain? It’s understandable that Benzema ahead of the pack after his stellar season, but he has company atop the list.
Most sportsbooks have new Barcelona striker Robert Lewandowski as the joint-favorite alongside Benzema. The German scored at least 30 league goals in five of the last seven Bundesliga seasons at Bayern Munich.
The biggest snub by the betting market might be last year’s second-place finisher Iago Aspas. The Celta Vigo talisman is 34 years old but has been a model of consistency, finishing with a double-digit goal tally in seven consecutive league seasons.
MORE: Latest Barcelona transfer news for summer 2022 window
Odds as of Aug. 9, 2022
| Player (Club) | SkyBet | DraftKings |
|---|---|---|
| Karim Benzema (Real Madrid) | 2/1 | +200 |
| Robert Lewandowski (Barcelona) | 2/1 | +200 |
| Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (Barcelona) | 16/1 | +1200 |
| Vinicius Jr (Real Madrid) | 14/1 | +1400 |
| Raphinha (Barcelona) | 16/1 | +1400 |
| Raul de Tomas (Espanyol) | 25/1 | +2000 |
| Iago Aspas (Celta Vigo) | 25/1 | +2000 |
| Gerard Moreno (Villarreal) | 33/1 | +2000 |
| Arnaut Danjuma (Villarreal) | 20/1 | +2000 |
| Alexander Isak (Real Sociedad) | 25/1 | +2200 |
| Alvaro Morata (Atletico Madrid) | 33/1 | +2200 |
| Antoine Griezmann (Atletico Madrid) | 33/1 | +2500 |
| Angel Correa (Atletico Madrid) | 25/1 | +2500 |
| Youssef En-Nesyri (Sevilla) | 25/1 | +2800 |
| Ansu Fati (Barcelona) | 25/1 | +2800 |
| Rodrygo (Real Madrid) | 33/1 | +3500 |
| Ousmane Dembele (Barcelona) | 33/1 | +4000 |
All-time La Liga Golden Boot (Pichichi)
Below are the top scorers in each season of La Liga since 1995, when the league adopted the modern calculation of three points for a victory.
| Year | Player | Team | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021-22 | Karim Benzema | Real Madrid | 27 |
| 2020-21 | Lionel Messi | Barcelona | 30 |
| 2019-20 | Lionel Messi | Barcelona | 25 |
| 2018-19 | Lionel Messi | Barcelona | 36 |
| 2017-18 | Lionel Messi | Barcelona | 34 |
| 2016-17 | Lionel Messi | Barcelona | 37 |
| 2015-16 | Luis Suarez | Barcelona | 40 |
| 2014-15 | Cristiano Ronaldo | Real Madrid | 48 |
| 2013-14 | Cristiano Ronaldo | Real Madrid | 31 |
| 2012-13 | Lionel Messi | Barcelona | 46 |
| 2011-12 | Lionel Messi | Barcelona | 50 |
| 2010-11 | Cristiano Ronaldo | Real Madrid | 40 |
| 2009-10 | Lionel Messi | Barcelona | 34 |
| 2008-09 | Diego Forlan | Atletico Madrid | 32 |
| 2007-08 | Daniel Guiza | Mallorca | 27 |
| 2006-07 | Ruud van Nistelrooy | Real Madrid | 25 |
| 2005-06 | Samuel Eto’o | Barcelona | 26 |
| 2004-05 | Samuel Eto’o | Barcelona | 25 |
| Diego Forlan | Villarreal | 25 | |
| 2003-04 | Ronaldo | Real Madrid | 24 |
| 2002-03 | Roy Makaay | Deportivo La Coruna | 29 |
| 2001-02 | Diego Tristan | Deportivo La Coruna | 20 |
| 2000-01 | Raul | Real Madrid | 24 |
| 1999-00 | Salva Ballesta | Racing Santander | 27 |
| 1998-99 | Raul | Real Madrid | 24 |
| 1997-98 | Christian Vieri | Atletico Madrid | 24 |
| 1996-97 | Ronaldo | Barcelona | 34 |
| 1995-96 | Juan Antonio Pizzi | Tenerife | 31 |
La Liga Pichichi Trophy 2021/22
While Karim Benzema may have competition for the top of the table this coming season, nobody can take away his incredible 2021/22 campaign.
The season to remember likely pushed the Frenchman towards his first-ever Ballon d’Or, finishing with nine more goals than anyone else and also collecting one fewer assist than the league leader. Ironically, the season’s assist leader Vinicius Jr. led the way largely thanks to Benzema, who was on the receiving end of eight of Vinicius’s 13 assists.
La Liga top scorer 2021/22 table
| Rank | Player | Club | Goals (PKs) | Assists | Matches | Mins |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | Karim Benzema | Real Madrid | 27 (7) | 12 | 32 | 2,603 |
| 2. | Iago Aspas | Celta Vigo | 18 (3) | 6 | 37 | 3,095 |
| 3. | Vinicius Jr. | Real Madrid | 17 (0) | 13 | 35 | 2,699 |
| Raul de Tomas | Espanyol | 17 (5) | 3 | 34 | 2,927 | |
| 5. | Juanmi | Real Betis | 16 (0) | 5 | 33 | 2,146 |
| Enes Unal | Getafe | 16 (2) | 1 | 37 | 2,813 | |
| 7. | Joselu | Alaves | 14 (6) | 5 | 37 | 3,125 |
| 8. | Jose Luis Morales | Levante | 13 (3) | 7 | 35 | 2,726 |
| 9. | Angel Correa | Atletico Madrid | 12 (0) | 5 | 36 | 1,855 |
| Memphis Depay | Barcelona | 12 (2) | 2 | 27 | 1,829 |
Note: There were also 23 own goals among the total of 951 goals scored in the 2021-22 La Liga season.