The NFT market is growing rapidly, and more companies and teams are entering the NFT business from the sports world. A new business style is being established in the sports world, such as the digital cards of famous athletes who have become NFTs. Starting with content centered on images, recently, various content such as videos, games, and tickets have become collectibles for youth sports. Among the investors, sports enthusiasts but also speculators, who simply hope to make a capital gain on resale.
What is an NFT?
The name NFT is the acronym for the English ‘Non-Fungible Token,’ that is to say that it is unique and not interchangeable. An NFT is a tamper-proof digital certificate of authenticity, whose ownership is traceable, using blockchain technology. Concretely, it is a contract whose rules are established by computer code and is based on a virtual or actual object.
These rules may limit the number of copies available for sale, authorize re-edition, or organize a system of royalties (authors’ rights) making it possible to remunerate the original author of a work during each transaction.
It is a new type of highly speculative digital asset, like cryptocurrencies, which uses blockchain technology, namely an authentication directory shared between a multitude of individuals without a central authority.
They are divided into collections. Owning digital collectibles sports also allows you to belong to a community and sometimes gives access to physical events such as conferences, football matches or meetings with professional players.
Who are the actors of NFT in sport?
It is above all rights holders, clubs and, sometimes, athletes themselves who venture into this technology.
Only sports with enough audience have started, such as football, rugby, basketball with the NBA, tennis or even cycling, with collectible cards that can be used in the Fantasy League.
Major players in this technology exchange online gaming unicorn have emerged in the field of sport through these digital goods.
Why is this technology attractive?
NFTs make it possible to create an additional source of income for these actors while strengthening the ties between a fan and an athlete or a club.
They can indeed be resold on the secondary market, and the clubs can earn commissions for each transaction by marketing the intellectual property without revealing the value of these amounts.
It is also a new opportunity for the sports world in a period of economic crisis linked to the Covid-19 pandemic. This virtual site allows (also) to engage fans who are geographically distant from the club to accentuate this relationship or to seek new ones.
This link is even stronger when the NFTs have a physical part like those of the ‘The Coach’ collection where the buyers become ‘partners’ and can attend conferences, receive autographed items from players, have coaching sessions.
NFTs are finally used as a vector to renew the spectator base, as in tennis, where it is extremely old, so it is vital to seek out young people, and these new technologies can open interesting doors.
Who buys these ‘sports’ NFTs?
Two types of population are interested in digital collectibles for sports:
- Collectors who are fans of sports
- Speculators who have no attachment to sport but hope to make a capital gain on resale.
They are generally between 25 and 35 years old and are mainly men located everywhere in the world with a certain purchasing power and an interest in these new technologies.
Conclusion
In the rapidly evolving landscape of sports and technology, NFTs have emerged as a groundbreaking phenomenon. These unique digital tokens have unlocked novel avenues of engagement and revenue generation for both traditional sports entities and tech-savvy enthusiasts. By merging blockchain technology with the excitement of sports, collectibles for youth sports offer tangible ownership and authentic interactions.
From famous athletes’ digital collectibles to expanding into videos, games, and events, the sports world is embracing this revolutionary trend. While collectors immerse themselves in the passion of their favorite teams, speculators see the potential for financial gain. With NFTs, sports find themselves at the intersection of innovation and tradition, building bridges between athletes, clubs, and their global fan base. As the NFT saga continues, its transformative impact on the sports industry is just beginning to unfold.