The FIFA 2022 Qatar World Cup is the first World Cup featuring Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs). Not only did fans get to experience the games, but they also had a chance to own the moments as well.
NFTs have swept through the sport, with FIFA, Cocacola, Budweiser, Visa, and others launching them specifically to honor the World Cup. Clubs offered chances for spectators and fans to purchase NFTs
There are NFT-powered games and branded collectibles. The Metaverse allows the streaming of games from a metaverse lounge. The World Cup went to the extent of getting an official crypto sponsor, Crypto.com. More teams are revolutionizing the fan experience through these tokens.
The Blockchain Technology Behind the World Cup NFTs
FIFA partnered with blockchain specialists Algorand to release NFTs for the World Cup 2022. These feature iconic images and artwork from the men’s and women’s world cup. The main aim was to allow fans to own these quintessential moments. This presents the same opportunity that stickers and memorabilia give, as they are accessible and affordable on mobile phones and computers in English, Spanish, and French.
FIFA used a decentralized and scalable public blockchain using Web 3.0. This enables individuals to display their collections to family and friends. Fans can even trade them in the marketplace or exchange them for others. Additionally, FIFA will organize contests and challenges that can only be accessed by people who own digital art.
Algorand blockchain was founded by Silvio Micali, a Turing Award-winning cryptographer. This particular blockchain has been used by over 2,000 companies worldwide that seek to explore the capabilities of Web 3.0.
How Sports Organizations Use NFTs to Build a Fanbase
Players can monetize their personality and worth through their fanbase. Players with many supporters can create products and market them and sell them to their followers. Consequently, making money.
Teams or players can do this directly with their fans even without the use of middlemen. This is through marketplaces on the blockchain. By bypassing managers, marketing agencies, and agents, players can have direct interaction with their fan base, which is quite powerful.
When supporters purchase NFTs, they have access to certain things. For instance, they could have a digital signature from the player. They could end up winning various things, like a signed jersey, or even win a one-on-one session with the player. This is in addition to the many bitcoin bets placed on sites like sportsbet-io to show support while playing the odds in their favor.
With NFTs, certain access privileges within a fan base and club can be transferred to other parties. So, people who would otherwise never have access to them can buy them in a secondary marketplace. Therefore, increasing devotees’ possibility of gaining engagement that would otherwise not have been possible.
Benefits of NFTs in the Sports Industry & World Cup
NFTs provide a way for fans to support their favorite teams and engage with them. Followers can collect souvenirs for the team, gifs, videos, badges, and much more.
Moreover, NFTs provide a way for teams to cultivate long-term relationships with their followers. This helps to build brand engagement. It can also allow their fans to have a say in governance decisions.
Additionally, teams can use NFTs as a form of club membership. Owners of the tokens are entitled to certain things. For example, they can be invited to meet-and-greet events with the athletes.
NFTs provide a way for brands to earn an additional income stream. Most sports teams usually get their revenue through ticket sales, merchandise, sponsorships, and media rights. But with blockchain, teams can tokenize game tickets, live streams to ticket holders, and organize events in the metaverse.
Conclusion
Ultimately, NFTs will revolutionize the sports industry. Tokenization provides new ways for teams to make money and interact with their fan base. It’s quite likely that NFTs will grow beyond digital collectibles. There’s plenty of interest to see how tokens work out.
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