We always strive to be curious learners, and what space outside of AI is more ripe for learning than all things conencted to Blockchain, especially as it realtes to sport. This past week we stopped in to listen and learn at The Sporting Crypto event hosted by Pet Berisha and his team (learn all about his work on our podcast here) and our colleague Corey Leff and the folks at John Wall Street (you can learn all about his business on our podcast here). With sponsors including the HBAR Foundation, Benaiah Capital, and SCOR on Sweet, the event brought together an established and insightful group of speakers to form a number of fascinating panels. The audience included representatives of teams and leagues from around the country and world, as well as an inspiring group of entrepreneurs working to disrupt the world of sports through blockchain and the deployment of Web 3.0. Between the panels, breaks to mingle, and a networking lunch, we met many of these people and learned more about the progress of these revolutionary technologies within the sports industry. With that in mind, it made sense to reflect on the big takeaways and learning moments from the conference, and we asked our newsest team member, James Gumina to break it down.
Ignorance is the main barrier to adoption that these technologies face. As someone who did not come into the conference with a deep knowledge of blockchain technology, I was consistently surprised by how advanced and deployable the products that use it already are. Nearly all the panelists who spoke have worked on, are currently working on, or are invested in companies and services that employ blockchain technology as their main differentiator. Yet, many also highlighted that the adoption of blockchain technology has been met with public resistance. Ben Wiener, CEO of Benaiah Capital, likened blockchain and cryptocurrency to the county fair, saying that many of the services are rigged, like the ring-toss game, to harm the user. Because of this, members of the general public overlook the majority of beneficial use cases out of fear of rug-pulls and scams that seem to have gone hand-in-hand with the early days of the space.
The solution? Make your product so good that the user has no choice but to use it, or does not know it is built on the blockchain. There were two great examples of this from the panel. Nico Le Jeune, CEO of Courtyard.io, and David Lane, Chairman & CEO of Sports Illustrated Tickets. Both talked about how their technology was built with the user experience at the forefront and the blockchain technology in the rear. Nico specifically talked about how Courtyard originally focused on maximizing transparency by making their blockchain randomization publicly accessible. But recently, the company has pivoted away from that model to speed up and simplify their randomization, changing the operation slightly while improving the product. David talked about Sports Illustrated Tickets’ deal with the New York Red Bulls and the company’s focus on changing the meaning of the ticket, transforming it from a disposable digital barcode to a fan’s key to collectibles and memories from the event. However, similarly to Nico, David stressed the fact that users would not be forced to interact with the technology; he said that he uses his tech-agnostic mother in test groups specifically to verify that the technology is simple and easy to use. Making blockchain and Web 3.0 an additive, instead of completely changing the user experience, seems to be the fastest way to mass adoption and changing public perception. Blockchain and Web 3.0 should be tools for organizations and users, not the destination.
The use of blockchain for data collection and profile creation was one of the most talked-about features at the conference. Preeti Shetty, CEO of Upshot Systems CIC, talked extensively about the work she and Upshot do to build user profiles for organizations and teams. She highlighted that organizations focused on creating more detailed fan profiles through the blockchain could help organizations to specifically target marketing and promotions, saving money and running more effective campaigns. Sandy Khaund, Co-Founder and CEO of Credenza, and Shripal Shah, CDO of Next League, both talked about what implementation of these ideas could look like. Sandy mentioned targeted rewards programs for loyal fans and the ability to prevent reselling playoff tickets to opposing fans. Shripal echoed a similar idea, talking about how blockchain could prevent opposing fans from flooding stadiums and how organizations could focus on catering to local fans.
Leagues, teams, and the first-mover problem. Eric Grubman, Former EVP of the NFL and Chairman of Super Group Holding Company, laid out the dilemma many leagues and teams face succinctly in his panel, and it was a classic first-mover problem. No one wants to be the team to publicly attempt to implement this technology and fail. Furthermore, it is hard for teams and leagues to turn their backs on the Ticketmaster paychecks. And yet, it is inevitable that someone will make the move; everyone at the conference seemed to agree on that. The presence of team and league representatives made one thing clear: these aren’t just theoretical ideas; they’re gaining real traction across the industry.
Gaming and the blockchain. Another theme from the conference was the importance of gaming and gamification. It was the subject of its own panel led by John Linden, CEO of Mythical Games, and Tom Mizzone, Founder and CEO of Sweet. Both talked extensively about their products and the unique opportunities building on blockchain has afforded their games. John and Tom sport extremely impressive resumes, including the development of Call of Duty. It’s clear that they know what they are talking about and have a handle on what gamers want. Both Mythicall Games and Sweet have seen immense success within the sports category, coming from league partnerships and licensing, and see no end in sight. Like Nico and David, who prioritized user experience over showcasing the underlying tech, John and Tom emphasized building products enhanced by blockchain, not defined by it, to lower the barrier for skeptical users.
What’s next? Many of the products and services discussed at the conference are already taking off. Courtyard did $56 million in April, and the Sports Illustrated Red Bull Stadium will launch next February, to name a fraction. With media and ticketing rights contracts a major source of contention for all the American sports leagues, it seems likely that the next 12 months will bring more discussion, products, and implementation of blockchain and Web 3.0 into the world of sports. For now, many of the speakers recommended that we stay up to date with Real Madrid, Barcelona, and the Cleveland Cavaliers, among other franchises. If you are inspired to learn more about crypto, the blockchain, or Web 3.0, you can do so here, here, and here.
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