Australia’s cricket board and players union have inked a multi-year licencing agreement to produce NFTs (non-fungible tokens) in order to enter the digital collectibles market.
NFTS are digital assets, often connected to a picture, video, or sound sample, whose ownership is verified using blockchain technology.
Professional sports leagues and teams, such as the NBA and Germany’s Bundesliga, have poured money into the sector in order to establish new revenue streams from paying fans and investors.
NFTs and Sports
While not officially cryptocurrency, non-fungible tokens are closely tied to the phenomenon. In a nutshell, an NFT is a token that grants the owner access to a piece of digital art.
Non-fungible tokens have been available for a little over 7 years, although they have only recently gained popularity.
And how do NFTs relate to the world of sports? Because of the phenomenon’s popularity, many people have created NFTs based on sports.
There are a number of NFT trading sites that allow the buying and selling of sports-themed NFTs.
But what exactly are sports NFTs? They are best described by comparing them to baseball cards.
Baseball cards were originally considered a juvenile interest by those who remember them, yet many of those cards are now worth a lot of money.
NFTs are essentially digital baseball cards (but applied to numerous sports), and collectors hope that they will ultimately gain value and be able to be sold at a greater price!
Cricket Australia always a step forward
Cricket Australia (CA) and the Australian Cricketers Association (ACA) announced today that they have signed a multi-year licencing agreement with Singapore-based collectibles platform Rario and NFT trading company BlockTrust, allowing cricket fans to own and trade NFTs of some of Australia’s most memorable cricketing moments.
The value of an NFT, like the worth of other sports memorabilia, is determined by market demand.
It implies that one-of-a-kind digital reproductions of moments like Steve Waugh’s Ashes hundred at the SCG in 2003, Peter Siddle’s hat-trick in 2010, and Ellyse Perry’s double hundred in 2017 would be available for purchase and trading.
The revenue from Australian cricket NFTs will be split between players (past and present) and Cricket Australia under the terms of the agreement reached between the CA and the ACA, however, specifics of the agreement have not been shared publicly.
Comments
“We are excited to step into the metaverse with our partners Rario, BlockTrust, and the Australian Cricketers’ Association for this historic deal, which will open up huge opportunities for innovation and fan engagement,” Cricket Australia CEO, Nick Hockley, said in a statement.
“The game’s deep connection with its past, the passion of our fans, and the appeal of Australian cricketers to a global audience, means the incorporation of NFTs is another way that fans across the world can engage and be part of the sport.
“This is just the start and I have no doubt we will see enormous benefit for fans, players, and the sport itself as we build this exciting partnership.”
Rario, cricket’s first fully sanctioned digital collectibles platform, has already struck arrangements with the Caribbean Premier League, as well as leagues in the UAE and Sri Lanka, and has brand ambassadors including Aaron Finch and Faf Du Plessis!
