We’re back with The Sports Slice to take a bite into all things sports and crypto. Some of the latest headlines over the past week include the upcoming launch of LaLiga’s new NFT platform, a college quarterback’s new NFT NIL deal, and a crypto jersey patch deal cut unexpectedly short.
Let’s dive into all of the past week’s crypto and sports activity.
The Sports Slice
New Zealand Rugby Buys World Of Women Galaxy NFTs
New Zealand’s commercial arm of rugby and national team representative New Zealand Rugby made a hefty purchase of 33 World Of Women Galaxy NFTs this past week; the move is the team’s first NFT purchase, courtesy of some assistance with MoonPay – who is not an official declared partner of the team.
Fans on the team’s official Reddit outlet were unenthused.
LaLiga’s Digital Collectible’s First Platform Drop Is Slated For Later This Month
‘LaLiga Golazos,’ the long-awaited NFT product courtesy of Dapper Labs and the powerhouse soccer league, is set to debut in coming weeks. October 27th is slated as release day (paired with it’s initial first drop), and will feature some of the league’s biggest moments since 2005. The platform is expected to mirror the experience seen in Dapper’s other products, Top Shot and NFL All Day.
A College Quarterback’s $1M NFT NIL Deal
Texas quarterback Quinn Ewers is approaching $4M in NIL deals, courtesy of a new $1M NFT NIL deal established this past week with Metabilia. Over half the U.S. states have now established some sort of formalized NIL policy as universities look to find new avenues to recruit athletes, and athletes look at new avenues of compensation.
Ewers and Metabilia will launch a collaborative NFT project that will require a subscription fee to access drops and signed memorabilia. NIL territory is still very young for new platforms and projects to explore, and crypto and web3 firms haven’t shied away from doing so thus far.
Dapper Labs (FLOW) is set to release it's latest product courtesy of a league-wide deal with European soccer monster, LaLiga. | Source: FLOW-USD on TradingView.com
Athlete-Backed & Avalanche-Powered ‘MynaSwap’ Raises $6M
NFL stars including Kyler Murray and Odell Beckham Jr. were a part of a recent fundraise for Avalanche blockchain-based sneaker trading platform, MynaSwap. The raise, totaling $6M, will go towards building out the digital collectibles platform that provides digital authentification for physical goods. The platform is founded by Adeel Shams, co-founder of sneaker shop Coolkicks (which has become an LA staple in the sneakerhead community).
Crypto.com Reportedly Turning Down The Dial On Sports Partnerships
Crypto.com is reportedly cutting back on sports sponsorship engagements as the exchange likely faces increased budgetary constraints in the bear market. While the exact scope is unknown, reports emerged in recent days that Crypto.com was looking to cut scope with sports partners such as the World Cup and Twitch Rivals. The exchange was once a leading force in sports sponsorships and is now likely seeing a major shift in spending as the bear market has persisted throughout this year.
MoonPay’s First Sports Foray
One name we haven’t mentioned in the Slice‘s history is MoonPay. Check that box this week as the crypto exchange secured it’s first-ever sports deal with Brazilian soccer club Flamengo. The two will look to have MoonPay lead the charge on a variety of NFT engagement, including ticketing, loyalty programs, and more.
Trail Blazers Cut StormX Jersey Patch Deal
The NBA’s first crypto jersey patch deal was established in the middle of last year, and despite being a multi-year deal that was established between the Portland Trail Blazers and young platform StormX, it’s coming to a quiet and unexpected close. StormX has largely underperformed in the broader crypto marketplace, and despite signing an athlete endorsement deal with former Blazer CJ McCollum back in November, the exchange is rarely mentioned when top crypto exchanges are discussed. The club’s reasoning behind cutting the partner, who’s jersey patch was featured in media day content in recent weeks, was undisclosed.
We’ll see where Portland turns to next for a patch deal, after donning a BioFreeze patch prior to the StormX deal. The Blazers join the Grizzlies and Wizards among clubs currently searching for a jersey patch partner.
Featured image from Pexels, Charts from TradingView.com
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