5 Best Use Cases Of Blockchain Application For The Sports Industry
Blockchain has found adoption in several industries but for some reason, the sports industry has never been under the paradigm of blockchain services. But, the readers would be surprised to know that blockchain can actually find usage and purpose in the sports industry. To understand this concept in detail, one has to read the excerpts written below.
In the year 2018, there was a steady decline in the attendance of Major League Baseball games! It was the lowest in the last 15 years with a drop of at least 8.6% from its figures in 2017. The approximate loss due to the sharp decline led to a monetary shortfall of around $355 million worth ticket sales. A similar shortfall was also reported from the National Football League with a 2% drop in attendance with only 44% of respondents from One Survey’s list of respondents.
Meanwhile, the digital expansion of the e-sports market has been very significant, especially when it comes to incidence of people watching electronic sports through live video streaming or any other format supported digitally. The rise has been of a staggering 124 million between 2016 and 2020.
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While we talk of the application of blockchain within the fray of the sports industry, we must also look at the plausible areas where blockchain will find an application. This includes direct investment with athletes and clubs, real time betting platforms and other convertible aspects of a sporting event. While look at the possible uses of blockchain in the domain of sports, the following areas have been identified as platforms which can be integrated with blockchain
● Manage Ticket Sales
● Prevent Counterfeit Ticket Sales
● Team Reputation Management
● Eliminate Middlemen
● Prevent Fraudulent Activities
Let us take a look at some of the plausible use cases of Blockchain in the Sports Industry
1. Crypto Sponsorships: While we speak of sports sponsorships and brand promotions through jerseys and corporate logos; crypto sponsorships can go a long way in actually promoting different digital currencies. Brand endorsements by baseball and basketball teams have helped businesses in reaping enormous fortunes. The simple reason being the overall customers reach of local teams and players in terms of the number of people being reached out through each game. Since these games are played quite frequently, the end users would be more familiar with crypto brands.
2. Tokenizing Aspiring Athletes: The concept of tokenization of aspiring athletes is yet another revolutionary step which helps young players cope with financial pressures owing to injuries or poor form. It is a kind of investment which gives a lump sum amount payout against which the stakeholder will get a share of the future earnings of the player. Take for example a stakeholder gives a payout of $1,00000 for 5 players and 2 of them opt out from professional sports. The rest 3 end up earning more than $20,00000 annually and a 10% commission on the same would be a hefty earning in the long run. This is a good way to connect.
3. Decentralizing The Entire Ticket Purchase and refund process: A high value ticket refund is likely to cause a hit on the revenue of an existing sports and entertainment corporation. The reason is simple! Most companies offer an exponential refund to the customers in case the tickets do not reach the buyer within the stipulated period. The concept of physical ticket distribution sounds obsolete in an era where blockchain can be used to ensure real time distribution of tickets through smart contracts and real time data sharing.
4. Recording the performances and data in a secured manner: The very concept of performance recording and sharing is important from the perspective of the players and sponsors. It is important for the recorded information to be stored and shared over the blockchain to limit and streamline the accessibility of player performance recordings. This would ensure that there is no illegal access, scrutiny or replication of the game data other than individuals like coaches, general managers, trainers and franchise owners. The game recordings especially with the ones focusing on individual performances can be used by the players for future reference to improve their performance. The usage of blockchain to regulate key player data would result in minimization of data thefts while players would be migrating from one club to another.
5. Regulate Transparency in Drug Testing: Drug testing is an integral part of any sport. Blockchain is one of the most secure decentralized platforms which can regulate the entire paradigm of drug testing by securing it over a blockchain. The blockchain can manage the results of players, information about banned substances, government regulations, test history and test schedules in a very efficient manner. This would also prevent the critical and classified information from getting shared by outsiders. It helps in storing information within the fray of trust and consensus.
With dramatic improvements in the world of sports and entertainment, technology is taking center stage, especially when it comes to managing the entire fraternity. Thus, a decentralized technology like blockchain can play a very important role in organizing different verticals of the sports industry especially when it comes to key player information.
