Scoring Big: The Role of Cryptocurrencies in the Sports Industry

Cryptocurrencies are reshaping how various stakeholders in the sports industry finance, market, and engage with one another, spanning from sponsorships and payments to the tokenization of team shares and event tickets. A case in point: multiple sponsors, such as exchanges and NFTs, appear on the uniforms of clubs in the prestigious Premier League.

In the early days of January, a sponsorship agreement between Chelsea FC and Bingx emerged. Bingx inked a deal to become the official sponsor of the team’s attire, a commitment spanning the remainder of the current season and the next two editions of the Premiership.

Given our frequent coverage of Web3, it’s worth noting that popular teams are already exploring opportunities in the new era of the Internet. Just recently, it was revealed that Paris Saint-Germain (PSG), one of Europe’s powerhouse clubs, is preparing to enter the Web3 space and become the first football club to validate a Blockchain. To provide some context: sports clubs have been diving into the crypto world for some time now, thanks to initiatives like ‘fan tokens’, which offer digital assets providing partial ownership or exclusive perks related to a team.

What’s noteworthy about PSG’s approach is that it is the first time a club directly engages in refreshing its fan token reserves. In the case of the Parisian institution, their crypto asset was introduced in 2018 and is hosted on the Chiliz Blockchain, an ecosystem designed to support sports-related solutions. Essentially, the team will use its revenue as a validator to regularly repurchase its fan tokens. These repurchases will be executed through smart contracts and decentralized exchanges on the Chiliz Blockchain. According to Pär Helgosson, PSG’s Head of Web3, they anticipate the program generating rewards, new features, and services that will benefit the holders, sponsors, and players.

Payments to athletes and sports teams have also been reached by the crypto industry. For instance, in August 2021, it came to light that Club Deportivo y Mutual Leandro N. Alem (CDMA), a fourth-division football club in Argentina, would begin compensating its players with USDT (Tether). According to Daniel Etcheverry, the club’s coordinator, the entire team underwent general training, and the younger players agreed to receive their salaries in this manner. Other football clubs that offer bonuses or salaries in cryptocurrencies include AZ Alkmaar from the Eredivisie, Southampton FC from the Premiership, and Harunustaspor from Turkey.

Blockchain technology enables the tokenization of sports assets, such as shares and broadcasting rights. This allows fans to acquire and trade these tokens, ushering in a new era of investment and engagement in the sports world. To illustrate, let’s revisit Argentina, specifically to April 2023, when the AFA (Argentine Football Association) inked a deal with the UPLAND platform and introduced the first collection of NFTs featuring Argentine clubs. This collection includes goal videos, jerseys, and even special plays.

Shortly after the AFA announcement, FC Barcelona, one of Spain’s most iconic clubs, unveiled a partnership with Plastiks—a recycling company—to delve into Web3 and introduce a collection of NFTs. The spanish club proposed this commendable initiative to reduce plastic waste pollution globally. Dubbed “Unleash Your Passion“, the program presents an exclusive collection of 3,000 digital cards featuring animals. The club aims to utilize the proceeds to support Plastiks’ endeavors, as the company plans to recycle one billion kilograms of plastic by 2030.

Cryptocurrencies are also gaining traction in the online sports betting industry. Aware of the limitations of traditional fiat currencies, several betting platforms enable users to deposit and withdraw cryptocurrencies. One such platform is 1xBit, which offers a wide variety of casino games, lottery options, and eSports betting. 1xBit accepts a diverse range of blockchain-based assets, including Bitcoin, Litecoin, Dogecoin, Dash, Ethereum, Zcash, and Monero. Another popular option is Cloudbet, which offers a diverse selection of sports betting options, covering football, tennis, basketball, and eSports, and accepts cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin, Bitcoin Cash, and Ethereum. Betcoin and Sportsbet are also widely used alternatives.

The integration of cryptocurrencies into the sports world is creating new avenues for financing and connections between fans and clubs. Through the tokenization of team shares or broadcasting rights, cryptocurrencies offer fans worldwide the opportunity to participate in owning their favorite teams, even with modest investments. Additionally, the growing use of crypto to remunerate athletes and sports teams reflects the swift evolution of the industry.

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