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NFTs have been on everyone’s lips for some time now. More and more industries are trying to use NFTs as an additional source of income. Below, we look at the possible application of NFTs in the world of sport.

In the sports world, the use of NFTs is mostly limited to merchandising; because NFTs can be used everywhere where authenticity and uniqueness are important. However, there are also first attempts to use NFTs in the field of ticketing.

Digital trading cards

Possibly the best-known and most obvious area of application for NFTs in the field of sport is the design of trading cards in the form of an NFT. Such digital trading cards bring clubs and their athletes a bit closer together with their fans. On FANZONE.io, for example, sports enthusiasts can purchase their favourite athletes in the form of an NFT as a digital trading card and also resell them. In some cases, a personal greeting video of the respective athlete is also linked to the trading card, which increases the appeal of owning such trading cards many times over for die-hard fans.

Digital autographs

Similar to digital trading cards, autographs of athletes can also be possible as NFTs. Here, too, authenticity and uniqueness can be achieved by means of NFTs. The Swiss football club BSC Young Boys was the first sports club in the world to allow its fans to purchase digital autographs.

Video clips and pictures

Another possible application is pictures and video clips of special sporting moments in the form of an NFT. The North American Basketball League (NBA) has created NBA Top Shots in cooperation with the blockchain company Dapper Labs. NBA Top Shots is a marketplace for basketball fans where they can trade unique images or videos from the world of the NBA. Business is booming, with NBA Top Shots generating $500 million in revenue to date. For example, a video of LeBron James’ dunk in honour of the late Kobe Bryant was auctioned off for USD 387,000.

In-game applications

NFTs are also being used more and more frequently in the field of computer games. The company Sorare SAS, for example, developed a football manager game that uses blockchain technology based on Ethereum. Here, the individual players are offered in the form of an NFT. For this, Sorare has acquired the rights to offer the players virtually in the game from the respective clubs. The big difference here compared to conventional football manager games is the limitation of the frequency of the players through the use of the blockchain. For example, the footballer Cristiano Ronaldo exists only once in the game and can be acquired by means of an NFT.

Clothing

The trainer manufacturer Nike has made it its business to link physical goods with digital tokens. Under the name CryptoKicks, Nike established a patent that allows the authenticity of trainers to be verified with the help of an NFT system. When purchasing Nike shoes, the buyer receives a digital token that functions as a certificate of authenticity.

Ticketing

Another possibility outside of merchandising is the design of tickets for sporting events in the form of NFTs. In addition, this can prevent the counterfeiting and resale of tickets. It also simplifies the process for the organiser and the end user in the event of unexpected postponements of events.