Krishnan Sreekumar
Manchester United among other clubs enthusiastic about potential Premier League NFT license holder from next term
According to the Daily Mail, four companies are in the running for the Premier League’s Non-Fungible Token (NFT) license. Digital and cryptocurrency are arguably the hottest form for revenue streams in today’s world, and England’s top-flight looks like they are keen to jump on board to rake in more cash.
This gives clubs such as Manchester United the opportunity to become the latest sporting venture in the NFT market. As one of the biggest clubs in the world, United will do all that it can to expand further and create more avenues to generate revenue.
Not just the Red Devils, but it is said that other clubs are enthusiastic about having an additional source of revenue from this potential NFT contract that the Premier League is planning. If all goes well, a contract with a company as their partner is due to start next season.
It is said that there are four companies in the running to become the official PL partner NFT license holders – Sorare, Candy Digital, Dapper Labs, and ConsenSys. Football has seen rapid growth in NFT collections, as die-hard fans look to own exclusive tokens of their favourite teams and players.
Additional revenue stream boost
Next week, Premier League clubs will be asked to approve their preferred bidder, which will kick on things in the long term. It will be hard to see clubs go against this deal, as it will only bring in more revenue for them.
If things go smoothly in the coming weeks and the Premier League is able to sign a partner for their NFT license, then England’s top-flight could stand to gain richer by over £400m. Already one of the best leagues in the world, the PL will now look to make a bigger name for themselves with this deal.
The Premier League looks to usher in a new era, staying up to date with modern practices. NFTs have been taking over the world for a couple of years now, and it may be time for football leagues to catch up.
Even if the league has not caught up with the trend, footballers certainly have. Players past and present such as Reece James and John Terry have been involved in creating exclusive NFTs for their fans, and the practice is only sure to catch on.
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It is said that the company that wins the bid for the Premier League’s NFT license will be tasked with producing digital products for the competition – this includes virtual football stickers and trading cards featuring match footage and players at all 20 top-flight clubs. This way, all clubs stand to benefit from the deal and induce more interaction between them and the fans.
The future of football collectibles seems to be in the form of NFTs, replacing the token cards we used to collect as young kids. Physical cards may now be a thing of the past, as we look to start an era where fans collect virtual tokens instead.
