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The Sports NFT market doubled from $1.3 billion to $2.6 billion in 2022 and is expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 36.3% to reach $41.6 billion by 2032, a study from Market Decipher shows.
The report states that the shift from physical to digital fired the sports NFT market. Market Decipher analyst Chandradeep Singh commented on the results and said:
“NFTs allow fans to get rights of their favorite sports moment by acquiring NFTs of such video moments. Trading card, which is already a huge market share holder in sports memorabilia market shows a speedy shift from physical to digital.”
Physical collectibles can be damaged and lose value over time, as opposed to digital ones. Tokenized video clips, player accessories, and cards are the top collectibles that create high returns for holders.
Highlights from the report
Based on the data, NFL, Football, Basketball, Baseball, Cricket, and Ice Hockey are the branches in top demand in the sports NFT market.
According to the report, the Statue of LeBron, Brett Gardener from MLB Champions, and Jermall Charlo from Lions Only GOLD ULTIMATE collection are the top three most expensive sports NFTs far.
The Statue of LeBron James was photographed during a basketball match in 2020 and sold for $21.6 million, the most expensive so far. Brett Gardener’s and Jermall Charlo’s NFTs are the second and third most costly NFTs, sold for $21.28 million and $19.1 million, respectively.
Sports NFT Market
The sports NFT market brings the popularity of NFTs and sports fanatics together. While this mixture is already solid, the NFT market remained more or less intact during the current bear market. Even though the crypto community is experiencing the coldest winter ever, NFT sales increased by 59% while trading volumes surged by 553% compared to the second quarter of 2021.
RareMint’s Co-Founder Brett Calapp recently shared his opinions on the sports NFT market with CryptoSlate and explained why the sports NFT market is so prone to growth.
Current problems
Calapp identified the major problems of the traditional collectibles market as high fees and perishability.
Good quality sports collectibles are expensive and difficult to reach, even for relatively well-off buyers. Often, the collectibles require minimum buy-ins, which makes it even more difficult for the vast majority to invest in them.
Moreover, these hard-to-reach collectibles are in physical form, which makes them prone to decay.
Calapp argues that these problems push younger generations towards innovative solutions such as Sports NFTs. He states:
“Added challenges such as finding authentic collectibles, asset hoarding, and poor discoverability make younger generations turn to different avenues in support of their favorite players and teams.”
GenZ leads the way
Calapp also mentions the high adoption rates of GenZ and argues that they will be the main driving force behind the sports NFT market.
According to an article from Forbes, GenZ has “a high propensity to be more expressive,” which reflects positively on the crypto market. For them, self-expression is the key.
They’re also always looking for new platforms to express their unique identities and want to be closer to their hobbies and interests.