McDonald's is releasing its new chicken sandwich like a hot sneaker drop, with a limited edition hoodie and vinyl

• McDonald's is selling $5 chances to try its new chicken sandwiches before they officially debut.
• The fast-food chain is releasing three variations of chicken sandwiches on February 24.
• The capsule comes with a vinyl track and McDonald's hoodie.

McDonald's latest release is taking cues from sneaker drop culture with a limited edition capsule that includes the chance to try its new chicken sandwich a day before the official debut.

McDonald's is releasing three new chicken sandwiches on February 24, into the already-crowded fast-food chicken sandwich lineup. All are made with white meat chicken. The basic crispy chicken sandwich comes with pickles on a buttered potato roll, the spicy crispy chicken also includes spicy pepper sauce, and the deluxe sandwich features lettuce, tomatoes, and mayo.

Beginning on February 18 at noon ET, customers can buy the chance to taste the new sandwich early, along with a limited-edition capsule of other McDonald's merch at CHKNDrop.com. Buyers will get the chance to try any of the three new sandwiches one day earlier than the rest of the world, on February 23.

The $5 capsule also includes a vinyl copy of a track about the new chicken sandwich, which McDonald's says will soon be used in advertising. Buyers will also get a tan hoodie with references to the "crispyjuicytender" sandwiches.

"We know fans can't wait for our new Crispy Chicken Sandwich to hit restaurants, so we're celebrating them and this moment with a drop like no other," McDonald's VP of US Communications, David Tovar, said.

There's no denying the chicken sandwich wars are officially back on. Insider has reported on several chains gearing up to introduce competitors to Chick-fil-A and Popeyes, which both sell crispy chicken sandwiches with pickles. In January, KFC introduced a crispy chicken sandwich at nine locations, available across the country by the end of February, and Jimmy John's dropped its own version of the chicken sandwich in a Super Bowl ad. Most recently, Burger King announced a new chicken sandwich coming later this year.

McDonald's has experimented with selling merchandise along with food over the past year to great success. A high-profile collaboration with Travis Scott was so popular that some locations ran out of Quarter Pounder ingredients. Scott reportedly earned $20 million from the deal, with a whopping $15 million from merch, including a $98 hoodie and a McNugget-shaped body pillow.

Other merch drops have been less successful for the fast-food chain. In October, McDonald's followed up the success of the Travis Scott meal with the J. Balvin meal, and a collection that was supposed to include a McFlurry bucket hat, Big Mac slippers, and even a temporary tattoo of a receipt for the J Balvin meal. In January, "production challenges" canceled the line, and customers were refunded.

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