NFT and Flow blockchain creator Dapper labs has reached a deal with the NFL to create an NBA Top-Shot style marketplace for digital football tokens and collectibles. This is according to a report in the Sports Business Journal.
Sources told the publication that the deal will make Dapper Labs the NFL Players Associations second-largest source of digital licensing behind EA Sports’ “Madden” video game franchise.
JUst like NBA Top-Shot, the new NFT marketplace will run on the Flow blockchain and will be released during the current NFL season. The current season will end on Jan 9.
A central part of the new project will be video content, which has also been the case for the company’s prized NBA product. NBA Top-Shot has traded $780 million worth of collectibles in 2021 so far.
On Sept 22, Dapper Labs closed a $250 million funding round that valued the NFT company at $7.6 billion. This comes just after Sorare, soccer’s leading NFT shop, added $680 million to its value in a funding round that valued the company at $4.3 billion.
Specifics around the agreement between the NFL and Dapper Labs are currently sparse but it is assumed that the new NFT marketplace will largely resemble NBA Top-Shot. The Sports Business Journal did report that the NFL will take equity in Dapper Labs and that the deal also includes a minimum guarantee and royalties.
The NFLs initial interest in NFTs came around in March 2021, when Brain Rolapp sent a memo confirming that the NFL was in talks with potential digital collectibles partners. The memo asked clubs not to make any deals of their own without checking with the NFL.
Sports NFTs have proven popular with fans. The rollout of NBA Top-Shot occurred in October 202 and saw daily sales volume on the marketplace reach almost $48 million from just 45,000 users. Dapper Labs also revealed that Top Shot had facilitated $700 million in sales on the marketplace by May.
Some may argue that the NFL is late to the game. A number of top sports leagues in the US now have their own blockchain-based product and almost every football team in Europe has an NFT deal.
However, the NFTs un-rushed decision to enter the NFT space puts the project in a stronger and more financially stable position. The league has spent time observing other launches and learning from their mistakes. Waiting to enter the industry has also given the organisation time to disregard unsuccessful projects and understand what types of NFT product will generate the most success.
