Rise of the Crypto Fan: Fan Tokens are enabling sports fans to connect in an unprecedented way

When the pandemic started, one of the things that sports fans missed was watching an exhilarating match with fellow fans, while shouting themselves hoarse. If you didn’t miss that then sports currency is not for you. Fan Tokens are on the rise, which is enabling sports fans to connect in an unprecedented way. But what are these new-fangled items?

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Sports cryptocurrencies are digital assets that aid sports teams, clubs, associations, leagues, and professional athletes to boost their fan base and engagement. It enables teams to remain connected with fans who live in a different geography and so may not have the opportunities or freedom to connect directly. Sports cryptocurrencies have been used to allow fans to purchase tickets and merchandise and for clubs to pay players’ salaries and transfer fees.

“Cryptocurrency is the fastest-growing sponsorship category in sports for a reason. The crypto industry adds a lot of value for leagues, franchises, and athletes globally. In turn, leagues, franchises, associations, clubs, and players are looking to connect with audiences, like GenZers and millennials, an elusive and critical demographic for the sports industry that crypto has in spades,” Abhijit Shukla, CEO and Director of Revolution Games, a sports and esports platform that has developed a sports-based community token, told The Tech Panda.

Globally, sports sponsorship is a US$40 billion industry. According to some reports, more than US$3 billion has been spent on sports sponsorships in the past year alone — increasingly by crypto firms.

Significance of the ‘Crypto Fan’

Fan tokens are a type of cryptocurrency designed to provide membership benefits to fandoms of sports teams, leagues, clubs, bands, and other groups. The holders of fan tokens are often entitled to membership perks, such as access to exclusive content, prizes, experiences, and the right to vote on management decisions.

The more tokens a fan owns, the higher they move on the platform’s fan ladder. Eventually, they can also unlock the biggest VIP benefits

Crypto fan tokens are the latest way sports clubs can monetize fan support. Some of the world’s biggest football clubs are already on board the crypto fan token hype train. A-list clubs FC Barcelona, AC Milan, Paris Saint-German, and Juventus already offer them to their most devoted fans.

Shukla adds that fan tokens create an exclusive community of dedicated fans on the trading platforms that they operate, and many also run a lucrative rewards system. “The more tokens a fan owns, the higher they move on the platform’s fan ladder. Eventually, they can also unlock the biggest VIP benefits.”

How Blockchain Entered Sports

The sports industry has been teching up in the last few years. With the sports fan going digitally native and the pandemic shutting doors on ticket revenue for live events, sports as well as esports have been rummaging for alternative revenue streams. They’ve also had to think of out of the box ways to sustain fan engagement.

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Enter modern players like blockchain, and the world of sports changes forever. Blockchain based sports cryptocurrencies are not only sustaining fan engagement but are also helping the industry monetise those fan bases, possibly even more than before.