Sports NFT: A Beginner’s Guide To Enter the NFT Space

Is there any sports fan who wouldn’t want to purchase a priceless sporting event? Well, purchasing sports NFT has become more accessible and more popular NFT, all thanks to digitalization and blockchain technology. 

You can easily buy your favorite sports moment and other collectibles with Non-fungible tokens (NFTs) and secure them on the blockchain. Moreover, the introduction of sports NFTs into the world of NFT is expanding the world of non-fungible tokens and sports to a great extent.

Today, numerous projects transform sporting events, players, and other elements into digital assets that consumers can purchase. It is an excellent way for players, supporters, and clubs to connect and earn extra money.

Your Guide To Understand Everything about Sports NFT

To begin, Sports NFT is a unique and non-transferable record entity stored on a digital ledger (blockchain). Usually, NFTs can be linked to digital files such as photos, audio, video clips, text, memes, etc., and other NFT types.

Likewise, the significant NFT opportunities in the sports universe currently revolve around – 

• NFT sports cards (trading cards)
• NFT sports collectibles 
• Artwork of players
• Avatars
• 3D art
• Video clips, and 
• Event ticketing. 

Apart from these, you can also find sports memorabilia such as awards, trophies, certificates, players’ autographs, jerseys, and collector cards. However, with more time and evolution, the NFT sports economy will see more integration in the future.

Today, NFTs allow fans to purchase the best sports collectibles directly from content owners, eliminating the middleman and revenue leakage. On the other end of the scope, IP owners can earn lifelong royalties instantly from fans by trading or selling NFTs on a secondary market.

Sports-related NFTs were sold in the billions of dollars in 2021 alone. In fact, consulting firm McKinsey reported that weekly sports NF sales reached a staggering $138 million in one golden week.

Furthermore, according to Deloitte Global, NFTs for sports media will produce more than US$2 billion in transactions in 2022, which is rough twice as much as in 2021. By the end of 2022, 4-5 million sports fans worldwide are expected to have purchased or received an NFT sports collectible. 

How Sports Get Involved With NFTs?

Since the past year, the NFT sector has grown significantly, and the industry’s expansion has been attributed to the widespread use of NFTs. Additionally, celebrity marketing has given a significant boost on a global scale.

Sports NFTs are the latest use cases for utility NFTs in the tech and sports industries. These NFTs give sports fans fresh ways to get involved with and support their preferred players and teams. 

For instance, imagine a traditional football or basketball player trading cards in digital form for an easier way to comprehend sports NFTs.

In addition to the innovation in the sports arena, the technological advancement in blockchain has a significant role in combining NFTs and sports. 

Through blockchain technology, physical cards are transformed into NFTs that sports fans can collect, including memorabilia, gifs, video highlights, and game badges. They can also be traded on sports NFT marketplaces.

One best example of NFT-sports integration is NBA NFT, a popular NFT sports marketplace that helps sell collectible NFTs with epic NBA moments.

Many such examples are going to be discussed in the next section.

NFT Sports Collectibles Examples 

Sports NFTs give ardent followers new ways to interact with and support their favorite athletes. There are useful applications for sports NFTs as NFTs advance, and these are all poised to revolutionize the sector in fascinating ways. Here are some examples of best sports NFT.

• NFT sports card and games 

• NFT videos of best moments 

• NFT photos and other files 

• NFT sports memorabilia 

• Online events 

• NFT sports charity 

Apart from these, other examples of sports NFT include avatars, emojis, digital photography, drawings, pictures, animations, and stickers. Furthermore, one can also own quotes, social media messages (announced by athletes), passes, tickets, etc.,

You can also combine various things in NFT. It could be a collectible card, an athlete’s autograph, a selfie, memorabilia, a virtual meeting, a date, etc.

The possibilities for using NFT in the world of sports are endless because players, teams, leagues, and fans continuously develop new NFT concepts. 

How do NFTs add Value To Sports Field?

NFTs allow sports organizations and athletes to build enduring bonds with their supporters and fans. They are transforming the idea of sports memorabilia and other sports items by enabling fans to own their favorite player’s cards and even game videos. 

Furthermore, NFTs also change the way sports organizations communicate with their fans. Teams can now increase fan engagement by giving unique benefits to their members. 

Here are two popular ways in which NFTs benefit the sports industry:

A new stream of income

Traditionally, the direct or primary sources of revenue for a sports business have been ticket sales, sponsorships, and media rights. However, this can be transformed with the help of NFT.

It is possible to bring an additional revenue stream to sports teams with NFTs. Moreover, even amid the pandemic, sports teams can make use of NFTs to tokenize game tickets, plan holder-only events in the metaverse, or stream live games to token holders.

Personal branding

Individual athletes can launch their own NFT collections to involve their fan base. This creates an excellent bond between the player and their devoted fans, similar to trading cards. 

Additionally, athletes can also safeguard their IP rights by issuing NFTs. As NFT creators, they are also entitled to royalties from the NFT sales. 

Clubs That Are Joining The NFT Space         

Here are some famous NFT football clubs that are joining NFT and metaverse industries. 

• FC Barcelona

• LFC Heroes Club Liverpool

• Paris Saint Germain (PSG)

• Manchester City FC

• Juventus club

• Birmingham FC

• Crystal Palace FC

How Will NFTs Change The Sports Field?

There are several ways in which NFTs demonstrate a transformative approach to the sports industry which are as follows:

Fan tokens and participation

The NFT sports industry have a fascinating use case in the form of fan tokens, which provide special access to sports fans. By owning the fan tokens, people can influence certain decisions undertaken by sports teams, promotional activities, and VIP rewards. Also, unlike NFTs, fan tokens are exchangeable and tradeable. 

Launching digital platforms

The innovative NFTs are also being driven by athletes to serve as their media platforms. The small and large player unions have helped monetize the stars outside their teams. Additionally, a number of marketing initiatives have banded together to work with unions that represent athletes connected to various games.

Memorabilia

Collectibles have significant value due to their own history. Since NFTs offers excellent transparency, they make ownership easy to verify. 

Moments by NBA Top Shot

A “Moment,” marketed through the NBA Top Shot platform, is a noteworthy illustration of a digital collectible. Moments include a video clip of a game/sport, such as a shot, dunk, steal, or block, and key player statistics stored in a proprietary file format. 

The moments can be bought directly in “packs” and then sold or traded individually like regular basketball or baseball cards. Also, you can store these moments in digital wallets.

Combining tangible items and digital tokens

Tangible items such as sports sneakers are being driven by NFTs in a big way. For instance, major sneaker manufacturers, including Nike, have patented a process known as Cryptokicks that uses NFT to confirm the products’ authenticity. 

Customers who purchase a pair of Cryptokicks receive a digital token that guarantees the authenticity of the shoes as they are transferred from one buyer to another.

Connecting computer games with NFT

A connection between video games and NFTs offers intriguing potential. Players assume the role of managers in football games like Sorare and buy and sell footballers in exchange for their virtual goods. 

The partnerships between different clubs and the platforms, which enable the sale of those teams’ players in the game, are also strengthened by NFTs.

Conclusion

Currently, NFT applications are expanding in the sports industry, and this trend is expected to continue. The digital assets allow organizations to interact with their fans and also open up fresh revenue streams. 

Even though sports fans still enjoy unique badges to own, trade, and wear, NFT sports use cases today go far beyond digital collectibles.