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By Ryan Wilkinson, Head of Product at Blockasset.co
Athlete-issued fan tokens are promised to bring fans and athletes closer, enabling fans to build relationships while their star can build their brand. However, many fan tokens only offer access to a shop or the occasional vote and stop there. These projects remain shallow instead of providing ways for the two parties to interact and engage. They’re lacking a full-fledged ecosystem — one that harnesses the power of NFTs rather than fungible fan tokens.
A sports ecosystem built on NFTs, for example, provides a way to unite athletes, fans, crypto enthusiasts, professionals, and so much more.
Both Digital and Real-Life Experience
For one, a fully-featured ecosystem removes the need for a third party. Fan tokens often involve the athlete’s representatives searching for profits rather than building a fan relationship.
By creating a platform for fans and athletes to engage and launch projects together, discuss topics, or arrange in-person meetups, an ecosystem facilitates these relationships naturally rather than simply providing another way for fans to buy merch.
Benefits for Fans from the Athletes' Hands
These ecosystems require athletes to launch their own NFT collections in which their biggest fans hold and trade. NFT holders become part of an exclusive “club” of sports and earn additional benefits issued entirely by athletes. Examples include an athlete picking specific NFT holders to host a charity event or inviting them to an AMA to learn more about their favorite star.
Such an ecosystem provides an accessible, desirable way for more people to get involved with NFTs. Today, many NFTs and their accompanying platforms lack a sense of utility, especially for the mainstream crowd. They exist to hold and potentially sell in the future.
The Next Steps in the Growth of NFTs in Sports
Ecosystems not only make NFTs more accessible, which would accelerate mass technology adoption as a whole, but also desirable in that fans will happily engage in new methods to feel closer to their favorite athletes. Not only does investing in an athlete-issued NFT provide access to a dedicated “club,” but profits go right into the athlete’s pocket. Fans will undoubtedly welcome a way to support their stars as well directly.
Considering sports fans are people of all types, be it technologically-minded people, professionals outside of tech, or people in crypto, an athlete-powered NFT ecosystem is the perfect way to bring this technology to new sets of eyes.
Now, a future where fans everywhere invest in NFTs issued by their favorite athletes is still a ways away. After all, athletes still need to get involved and plan the best ways to issue NFTs themselves! However, it’s entirely possible that once fans experience the unmatched engagement offered by NFT-powered platforms, they’ll never want to go back.
Who is Bringing the Future Closer Today
Projects like this are already in the works, and Blockasset is at the forefront of them. These initiatives involve athletes issuing their own NFT collections and earning royalties as fans trade them within the exclusive marketplaces. NFT holders earn exclusive benefits decided upon by their representative athlete, and this is all just the beginning.
As the world continues to open up and sports meetups and matches become more common, the possibilities of an NFT sports ecosystem seek to grow and are far from over.