4 major sports franchises that have jumped into Web3

Across the modern spectrum of entertainment media, sports are the most apt to integrate NFTs for fan engagement and interaction. Using NFTs, sports fans can preserve their favorite highlights, represent their favorite teams and players, and even participate in the ancient practice of trading collectibles.

Wondering how it works? Read on for a comprehensive look at how sports franchises and (at times) entire sports leagues have approached the practice of NFT adoption to increase engagement with their respective fan bases.

NBA Top Shot’s vision for the future of trading cards

Gray markets for trading cards have emerged to reflect the real stakes of nearly every major North American sports league for decades. The NBA is no exception: In recent years, trading cards featuring the league’s most notable players have regularly sold for millions of dollars on the open market. A rookie card for Mavericks superstar Luka Doncic even sold for more than $4 million in February 2021, despite Doncic only entering his third NBA season at the time of the sale. In light of his early success, the card could swell in value even more in the coming years.

But what does this have to do with NFTs? If Web2 had physical trading cards, Web3 has NBA Top Shot. Despite the difficulties the collection faced in 2022, it still stands as a potent reminder of what securing official licenses can do to ensure an NFT collection’s success. Thanks to NBA Top Shot’s official partnership with the NBA, it has gained full access to iconic highlights throughout the league’s nearly 80-year history as collectible NFTs for the global NBA fandom.

The official cosign inevitably led to strong sales for these collectibles, especially during 2021’s massive bull run. During the peak of NBA Top Shot’s popularity, the collection sold more than $200 million in the months of February and March 2021. Sales have largely slowed since then, in line with the rest of the market, but the community has maintained an active interest in what is undoubtedly a of the easiest NFT collectibles you can score on the market right now.

Taking the premise of NBA Top Shot to the logical next step, WWE decided to offer fans a more immersive way to collect these animated NFT highlights. Through the WWE Moonsault NFT Marketplace, fans can enjoy timed drops of 10,000-piece collectibles called “NFT Flips.”

Each batch of Flips released in conjunction with WWE’s latest pay-per-view event also features a highlight either from the event’s early beginnings or its ever-growing prominence in the modern world. The initiative began with an NFT drop that coincided with 2022’s Hell in a Cell Event, which definitely included one of Reddit’s most enduring memes in the collection. Due to this being a much newer project than NBA Top Shot, it remains to be seen whether it will mirror the former’s long-term performance, or completely turn the page. But if the last couple of WWE pay-per-view events are anything to go by, the Moonsault is definitely here to stay. A glance at the Moonsault Market will show you that all Survivor Series themed drops are sold out.

Major League Soccer signed a Bored Ape

Of all the Major League Soccer signings throughout history, perhaps the most unexpected would be Striker – a boring monkey. Through this truly unique signing, MLS intended to capitalize on the growing sports NFT movement by providing fans with a unique extra layer of entertainment. Prior to the signing, Striker was simply known as Bored Ape #6045, which marketing agency Get Engaged acquired for a healthy sum of 100 ETH. After that, Striker seemed to make inroads into soccer fandoms around the world, thanks to The MLS’ All-Star Game.

The striker eventually made his virtual debut at MLS’ All-Star Game on August 10, 2022, celebrated as the league’s newest All-Star. On the virtual pitch, Striker was set to play the position of – you guessed it – striker.

The NFL will begin its foray into the play-to-earn (P2E) gaming space with NFL Rivals, a general manager sim that allows users to analyze every single player from the NFL’s more than 100-year history – and draft them for consideration in the fantasy rosters of their dreams their. That means there would be not only some really stacked lists for all time, but maybe even all time meme lists with Tim Tebow leading lineups with the likes of Rudy.

However, NFL Rivals won’t just be a conventional P2E game. Like its contemporaries in blockchain games, it is more often described as a play-to-own experience. This will allow users to freely trade and trade their most valuable players on the open market, either to improve the competitiveness of their roster or to earn a quick extra buck. Ahead of the game’s 2023 launch, the NFL has drummed up fan interest in NFTs with the NFL Rarity League Collection – a series of virtual helmets designed after each NFL franchise. Stocks also gradually deplete, and each team has themed virtual helmets that only have several hundred in stock each.