ZURICH — The boundary between simulation and reality is becoming increasingly blurred. With virtual football growing in popularity daily, the FIFA World Football Museum in Zurich has decided to turn the spotlight on this global cultural phenomenon by opening a new exhibition area dedicated to the digital game’s technology and competitions as well as its accompanying lifestyle — from past, present and future perspectives. “The Virtual Pitch” will be open to visitors from July 16, 2020 as part of the permanent exhibition. “For some time now, eFootball has been a compelling part of the global football culture, with fans living out their passion for the beautiful game digitally in their hundreds of millions. The fascinating — and growing — interplay between the physical and virtual worlds of football is what we want to present and examine with this new exhibition area. “We are delighted that visitors to our museum, which embraces football’s history as well as its culture and is a unique meeting place, can enjoy a valuable addition to the permanent exhibition in ‘The Virtual Pitch‘,“ said Marco Fazzone, managing director of the FIFA World Football Museum. The FIFA Museum — where past and future meet Visitors can discover the world of eFootball via the many interactive stations in the museum, including special gaming pods based on the originals used for the FIFA eWorld Cup, on which they can test their console skills on past and present versions of the FIFA gaming series. Animations reveal how the game has developed graphically in terms of the stars’ appearance. Visitors can transpose themselves in scenes from the virtual world at a selfie station and be transported from their living room to the stage of the FIFA eWorld Cup. Naturally, the FIFA eWorld Cup trophy itself is on display. In addition to “The Virtual Pitch”, an interactive Experience Zone will be open from July 16, 2020 to Jan. 3, 2021, giving visitors of all ages the chance to compete against each other at numerous gaming pods, try out earlier versions of the FIFA game and enter the world of virtual reality — all free of charge. There will also be various FIFA tournaments that anyone can enter and have a chance to take part in a final live at the museum. An interactive virtual experience for the whole family “We are proud to be putting the spotlight on eFootball in the museum’s permanent exhibition, as it is an integral part of modern football culture,” explains Christian Volk, director of e-Football and Gaming at FIFA. “This highly creative, modern and interactive exhibition area will be a great experience for a wide section of the public.” Visitors will be able to enjoy the latest addition to the permanent exhibition on the first floor of the museum and the interactive Experience Zone in the Event Hall from Tuesdays to Sundays between 10:00 and 18:00, while observing the latest hygiene and safety measures. A separate ticket will be available for visitors who only want to visit the new exhibition area “The Virtual Pitch” and the other attractions on the first floor of the permanent exhibition. Entry to the interactive Experience Zone will be free. — SG