The Guardian has launched its first daily football game, 'On the ball', as part of an expansion of its puzzles hub. The new game, which debuted on 1 October, marks the first time the publisher has ventured beyond word and number puzzles, signalling a commitment to growing its digital puzzle offering.
'On the ball' challenges users to identify a men's top league footballer in just five attempts, promising to test even the most dedicated football fans. The game is the first of several new puzzles, including a mini crossword and 'Film reveal', a tile-based game where players guess film titles from clues.
The launch follows a revamp of the Guardian app in May, which introduced a puzzles hub alongside a homepage redesign and personalised features. To date, over 1.7 million readers have used the puzzle hub across web and app.
Liz Wynn, chief supporter officer at Guardian Media Group, said: 'In a busy news cycle, we want to offer Guardian readers a fun way to upgrade their downtime. We believe that puzzles are an excellent way to do this.' She added that the ambition is to bring more people to the Guardian and become a destination for games enthusiasts.
The new games are available in the Puzzles tab of the Guardian app, with a marketing campaign planned for October to promote the puzzle expansion.
