Sports NFTs have dramatically transformed the means of engagement, i.e. the ways in which fans and supporters can support their chosen teams and athletes.
Fans can now embark on direct interaction with their chosen athletes with immersive digital environments, while also attending sports events live. Sports NFTs are one of the newest avatars of NFTs or non-fungible tokens.
These are essentially non-interchangeable and unique code pieces with storage on the blockchain. They are novel digital assets built on the blockchain for representing sporting moments, sports cards for digital trading, digital memorabilia, and various other kinds of items.
Engagement of the fans is a key parameter for generating sales of merchandise, sponsor revenues, and ticket revenues as well. This includes attending/watching games live, attending signings and other events, purchasing merchandise, and more.
The key element here is that fans always desire closer interactions with their favourite players and teams. This has naturally led to new-age platforms where fans are now trading and buying digital memorabilia and keepsakes. An example would be the NBA Top Shorts NFT marketplace of the National Basketball League.
Fans are already selling, purchasing, and trading video clips of basketball across tiers like legendary and common. Similar platforms are also being created by the National Hockey League and National Football League.
Going forward, the new rules of engagement will include attending special events, live matches, purchases, and more. Platforms like these are already integrating collectibles and other segments into the Web3 fold.
NFTs are steadily engaging more fans and are functioning as hugely powerful tools for marketing which can draw more newcomers to sports as well. e-Sports fans worldwide have also got an opportunity for getting tokens which can unlock more access to exclusive clubs, VIP zones, and also channels which are hosted by popular players and teams.
Sports NFTs are clearly here to stay, redefining the traditional rules of engagement and sparking what may be called interactive fan commerce in turn.
