Want to jump straight to how to buy sports NFTs? Sorare is the premier sports NFT and fan-token platform with an unmatched selection of collaborations with world-famous sports teams.
According to GlobeNewswire, in 2022 the sports industry is projected to reach a total valuation of over $500 billion. This rapidly growing market has now adopted sports non-fungible tokens (NFTs) as a way to further drive engagement with fans. NFTs in sports could be used for a variety of things including art of your favorite player, tokenized collectible trading cards or tradable team tokens linked to your favorite team.
This guide will describe the sports NFT market and how to get involved. In the past year, NFTs have already been used by massive soccer clubs, the NBA, NFL and MLB. It can be hard navigating this vast space, but this guide will help get you started.
What is an NFT?
NFTs are unique digital assets. Unlike a fungible asset like the U.S. dollar or a basic cryptocurrency, which can be exchanged for another identical asset, NFTs are not mutually interchangeable. These assets can not be replaced by another identical item.
NFTs are stored on a blockchain and are one-of-a-kind tokens that cannot be replicated. NFTs can be used to represent anything unique. NFTs are often used to represent collectibles, artwork or other items with value that cannot be reproduced.
In 2022, large sports institutions have already tokenized many aspects of their industry into NFTs. These assets are often minted on the Ethereum blockchain because of its market dominance in this area. After they are minted, they are usually tradable on any NFT platform. Fans can buy and trade these assets in real-time, earn rewards and receive physical goodies like a signed jersey from the team for their engagement.
An important characteristic of NFTs is that you can easily prove that you are the sole owner of the asset or assets represented by the token. All you need to do is check the blockchain.
How NFTs Can Enhance Sports Fandoms
In terms of sports, fans have strong connections to their favorite player or team and want to be involved with them as much as possible. This engagement could be visiting a live game, buying merchandise or attending signing events. Fans always want to be near their favorite player, and sports NFTs are a new revenue stream for the industry.
Sorare and Binance are two reputable platforms that are actively partnering with players and teams to build on this new opportunity.
Sorare Platform Overview
Sorare is a digital sports fantasy platform that builds on NFTs and allows fans to not only create their favorite fantasy team but own and earn from their favorite fantasy lineups. The cards offered by Sorare are officially licensed digital cards featuring the world's greatest basketball, football and MLB players.
The teams you create with your digital collection allow you to earn points based on the player's real-life performance on the field. Fans can enter contests and possibly win big.
The playing cards on Sorare are tokenized using the Ethereum blockchain and can be freely traded as sports collectibles. Along with in-game use cases, tokenization adds a new layer of strategy and collectability to this innovative betting arena.
How to Get Started on Sorare
The main product of the Sorare ecosystem is its tiered playing cards, which are bid on and traded within its marketplace by fans interested in building their deck's value.
Cards traded on the Sorare platform are officially licensed by the team or club that they represent and are built to the ERC-721 standard. This standard is the basic contract on the Ethereum network that allows for the minting and trading of NFTs and the provable scarcity of these digital collectibles.
Card scarcity comes in four categories:
- Unique (one-of-a-kind)
- Super Rare (10 total copies available)
- Rare (100 copies available)
- Common (unlimited number of copies available).
Upon opening a new account with Sorare, you will receive a complimentary pack of common cards to get started. The cards given for free do not hold any initial value, but they are very useful for getting started creating your team. As you get better at playing on the platform, then you can move into collecting higher-tier cards and becoming more competitive.
Common cards can also be used as a base and then supplemented with higher-level cards to optimize how effective your team is. If you come across a card you want to add to your deck, then you can place a bid on it using either a debit card or cryptocurrency in your Ethereum wallet. All cards have a limited amount of time you can bid, so once the counter is up, then no more bids can be placed.
After you have created a deck you are comfortable with, you can hop into the Sorare tournament arena and put your sports knowledge to the test. To keep events on a fair playing field, the tournaments are divided by skill level and the type of cards the players have. This prevents a seasoned player with high-level cards from competing with a brand-new user with a common deck.
The prizes awarded to players who win tournaments include:
- Limited edition cards: Unique, Super Rare and Rare cards that can enhance your deck are commonly offered as prizes.
- Ether: High-level tournaments can allow you to earn rewards in Ether, the currency that powers the Ethereum network.
Binance Fan Tokens Overview
Binance Fan Tokens are another innovation brought forth by the cryptocurrency industry to sports leagues that want to empower and reward fans. These tokens are a type of utility token that directly connects teams to fans globally. By using the Binance Launchpad, the Binance team has created a platform for teams to launch a token of their team to create better experiences and connect with their fans on a deeper level.
Fans that purchase their favorite team's token can:
- Influence team decisions by voting.
- Unlock Fan Badges to get special rewards or privileges.
- Obtain whitelist spots to purchase limited edition NFTs from a favorite team.
- Win once-in-a-lifetime opportunities such as a chance to meet favorite players.
How to Get Started with Binance Fan Tokens
- Visit the official Binance Fan Token platform and sign up.
- You can join a fan token launch pad to be among the first users with a specific team’s tokens, buy fan tokens with a bank card or purchase the fan token of your choice with crypto.
- From then on you can trade Fan Tokens or hold them and reap the benefits described earlier.
So, Are Sports NFTs Worth it?
If you are an avid sports fanatic and love interacting with your favorite teams, then sports tokens and NFTs might be right up your alley. It is important to remember that NFTs and cryptocurrencies are highly speculative and proper risk management is encouraged when trading these digital assets.
In the end, if you enjoy sports anyway, then these platforms should be viewed as more of a fun experience rather than an investment.
About Luke Jacobi
Luke Jacobi is a distinguished professional known for his role as President at Benzinga, a renowned financial media outlet. With a background in business operations and management, Luke brings valuable expertise to his position, overseeing various aspects of Benzinga’s operations. His contributions play a crucial role in the company’s success, ensuring efficiency and effectiveness across different departments. Prior to his role at Benzinga, Luke has held positions that have honed his skills in leadership and strategic decision-making. With a keen understanding of the financial industry and a commitment to driving innovation, Luke continues to make significant contributions to Benzinga’s mission of providing high-quality financial news and analysis.