While football takes place without supporters in stadiums due to the coronavirus pandemic, traditional mascot packages have been unavailable for all clubs, so Wolves began work on a virtual mascot experience to bring young supporters closer to the action on a matchday.
Trialled ahead of the 1-1 draw with Newcastle in October, and featured on the Sky Sports coverage that day, the mascot package gives ten young supporters the chance to dial into a special video call and engage with Nuno and the Wolves squad from the comfort of their own homes.
As well as access to the tunnel on matchday, the full virtual mascot package offers supporters a complete 2020/21 Wolves kit, including shorts and socks, a personalised letter from a first-team player and a signed mascot pennant.
Each mascot’s photo and name also features on Wolves’ Twitter, Instagram, matchday programme, pre-match email and the big screen at Molineux.
With the innovative package priced at just £95, all fixtures until the end of February were made available to supporters last week, with every package purchased in under two hours.
Wolves’ general manager for marketing & commercial growth Russell Jones said: “In these difficult times we are thrilled to be able to offer our young supporters an alternative to the standard mascot package, which traditionally provide an unforgettable experience for our young fans but clearly cannot take place during a pandemic.
“Using ingenuity, teamwork and technology we have been able to create a package for our young fans that offers them the next best thing to meeting their heroes in-person on matchday - now they can engage with them and wish them luck from their own homes.
“The rest of the package, including a full kit and personalised letter from a first-team player, offers value for money to our supporters, but we are absolutely delighted to be able to offer them the unique opportunity to experience a video call with their heroes and go behind the scenes in the Molineux tunnel.
“Our test phase before the Newcastle game proved a hit with our young fans, and we can’t wait to roll it out properly at our match with Southampton. We are certain other Premier League teams will follow suit and produce similar virtual experiences for their supporters on matchdays.”
