Kiyan Prince is to be given a virtual football career on FIFA 21.
Kiyan Prince
The prodigious QPR footballer was tragically killed aged 15 in May 2006 after being stabbed while trying to prevent a fight outside of his school in London but has now been re-signed by his club in conjunction with EA Sports to mark the 15th anniversary of his death.
Les Ferdinand, Director of Football at QPR, told BANG Showbiz: "Games like FIFA are so popular with young people and we knew it would be an effective way to inform young people about Kiyan's story and the dangers of knife crime."
Kiyan's likeness in the game has been developed by Framestore – the special effects studio who worked on the film 'Avengers: Endgame' – with input from his family and scientists from the University of Bradford to recreate Kiyan as the 30-year-old professional footballer he would be today.
Les added: "He was a centre-back, strong and aggressive but very good on the ball. There is so much data used in football now that EA have been able to recreate all the attributes he would have had."
QPR have worked closely with Kiyan's father Dr. Mark Prince since his death, particularly with the Kiyan Prince Foundation – which works to inspire and empower vulnerable young people – and renamed their ground the Kiyan Prince Foundation Stadium in 2019.
Kiyan will be officially re-signed by the club and given the squad number 30, while being listed as a squad member on all match day programmes.
Members of the public will see Kiyan's likeness across iconic billboards in the UK as part of a JD Sports advertising campaign.
All brands involved in the campaign - including EA, Adidas and Topps Cards, who are introducing him into their Match Attax game - are donating money to the Kiyan Prince Foundation for licensing the likeness.
Kiyan Prince will be available in Kick-Off Mode and Career Mode in FIFA 21 from May 18 on PC and from May 19 on PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Xbox Series X|S and Xbox One consoles.