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- Binance-backed fantasy sports startup locks in €4.7M funding
Binance-backed fantasy sports startup locks in €4.7M funding
Paul Pierce’s SEC fines over crypto, Super Puma NFT PFPs, plus more top stories
🏀 Metaproof Sports
This is Sophia from 🏀 Metaproof Sports, the weekly newsletter where we keep you informed on how the metaverse and web3 are changing the sports industry.
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This edition is sponsored by Matchday. Collect, trade and play in. Enjoy games built for football’s 5 billion fans.
Matchday features tens of thousands of well-loved footballers, in partnership with the global player union FIFPRO. Players, who 100% own the player cards they collect, can take their squad in 2023 and compete against others in the casual football game. The Matchday Marketplace is now live to get you started in building your dream squad and dive deep into Matchday games next year. Check them out today!
📲 By the numbers
The Super Bowl used to be the playground of cryptocurrency ads - what now? (Source)
Limit Break, the developer of digital collectibles firm DigiDaigaku, claimed to have spent $6.5M to put the only 1 cryptocurrency-related advertisement during this year’s Super Bowl.
A 30-second Super Bowl ad spot cost $7M this year, and companies need to make sure their message stands out when investing in production and other promotional efforts.
The cryptocurrency industry has seen a sharp decline since last year's Super Bowl, with Bitcoin's value dropping by 50% and total market capitalization losing $1 trillion.
📫 News & trends
Web3 gaming company Unagi has secured €4.7M in seed funding to expand its NFT fantasy sports platform and launch Ultimate Champions Basketball, bringing its total equity financing to €6.1M and the total amount raised through token sales to $5.7M.
In order to make this dream a reality, Unagi partnered with the European basketball competition EuroLeague and plans to launch next month the basketball version of its fantasy sports game that allows users to collect and trade legendary players from any sport as NFTs. It is currently in talks with several partners in the US and Asia to bring the game to more markets.
“What’s really cool about web3 is that it’s super early, the industry hasn’t really found a compelling business model yet, there’s a lot of trial and error, a lot of experimentation. Any type of existing game can be transformed into web3, because the essence of web3 gaming is ownership of in-game assets, and that’s what we’re exploring.”
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has charged former NBA player and hall of famer Paul Pierce with unlawfully touting crypto securities, noting his failure to disclose that he was paid for his promotional activities. As part of a recent settlement, Pierce has agreed to pay a penalty of $1.409M and a disgorgement of $162,000 plus interest, and he is prohibited from promoting any crypto asset securities for the next three years.
The SEC has warned celebrities to disclose any compensation they receive for promoting investment in securities. This includes payments from cryptocurrency issuers, who may offer digital tokens in exchange for promoting their products or services. Celebrities have been reminded to disclose any such payments to the SEC in accordance with federal securities laws.
Crypto exchange Binance’s update to its fan token platform is revolutionizing the way teams interact with their fans, offering these benefits and more:
Gather points fans can exchange for rewards, including game tickets, meet-and-greet access, video clips from players, and exclusive dinners with athletes
Have a direct say in how the teams operate, such as voting in polls
The potential of fan tokens is tremendous, allowing teams to foster deeper relationships with their supporters and build stronger communities. It also gives fans an unprecedented level of control, allowing them to shape the future of their teams.
Since launching, the platform has proven successful for clubs like Santos FC, Porto, SS Lazio, and Cristiano Ronaldo – helping them build a stronger connection with their fanbase. On July 28th, Binance teamed up with SS Lazio to use NFT for tickets at the club's home matches.
This February, Puma is taking its 75th anniversary celebrations to the next level with the release of 10,000 Super PUMA PFP NFTs. These web3-enabled interpretations of the company's beloved cartoon mascot are sure to be a hit with fans of the brand.
Puma is using web3 technology as an extension of its existing marketing and storytelling efforts and this new project is an exciting way to bring the brand's history to life. Each PFP NFT will be unique and users will be able to use them to access exclusive digital assets, as well as earn rewards for their participation in the project.
Pooky, a football-based blockchain game, has launched its first NFT collection where players can earn crypto-based rewards for guessing the outcomes of football matches, and with each correct prediction they receive a unique NFT designed by 3D studio Serial Cut and coming in varying levels of rarity.
Not only does this provide players with the opportunity to win cryptocurrency rewards, it also allows them to collect exclusive digital memorabilia that can be used to show off their football knowledge and passion. As an added bonus, Pooky will be transitioning to its native and tradeable TPK token before the end of the year, so players can look forward to potentially even greater rewards in the future.
Companies are investing in the sports metaverse, creating immersive experiences and virtual platforms for customers, employees, and fans. Some prime examples include:
Sony acquired Beyond Sports, Hawk-Eye Innovations, and Pulselive in 2022 to improve sports gaming, creating 3D content and metaverse live streaming experiences.
OKX and Man City joined forces to offer fans a virtual journey with sports stars, exclusive content, rewards, NFTs, and OKX as official training kit partner for 2022-23.
Top sports metaverse org LootMogul teamed up with Six Sport to create a web3 community and innovative experiences through blockchain, enlisting 241 pro athletes.
Digital sports platform Zetly partnered with Haste Arcade, PowChess, and Transmira to provide access to tokens, NFTs, & tech solutions to companies, athletes, and fans via its sports metaverse pilot.
Sports Icon is developing a digital sports platform on Flow blockchain, offering tokens for exclusive experiences to drive user engagement.
In 2022, many brands aimed to take advantage of the popularity of the metaverse and NFTs, resulting in more novel experiences in both virtual and physical realms. Looking to 2023, the TYNY report from GroupM predicts connected TV households will increase from 22 million to 30 million households, accelerating the need to integrate Connected TV planning with Linear TV, and with the emergence of household ID, unifying devices connected to a single network “will be interesting data for marketers from an omni channel point of view." Projects are underway to make linear television addressable, delivering use cases as broadcasters, distributors, and tech platforms will come together.
🏃♂️Quick hits
Zoop collaborated with NBA star Baron Davis for the NBA All-Star Weekend, making the basketball legend its advisor to digital celebrity collectibles trading platform.
Spanish soccer club Atletico Madrid will have its main sponsorship deal with the cryptocurrency firm Amber Group end early, reports revealed.
Global tech company CEEK Metaverse partnered with Celebrity Sports Academy on a youth basketball camp for NBA’s All Star Weekend Edition.
Versus the time when live broadcast was through TV channels, which only large media companies like sports associations had access to, live streaming has changed the game - and the metaverse is bound to take it to another level.
Ateme demonstrates a metaverse virtual lounge, powered by combined AR and VR, for social interaction while watching live events together in a virtual space in low latency on any screen at the MWC Barcelona 2023.
💸 Finance buzz
Sports trivia metaverse Smart Gamers Club unveiled 2023 updates to its trivia gaming app Superone, with the launch slated for early 2023. (Source)
Scorefam released version 2.0 of its crypto sports betting platform, promising a more intuitive and seamless experience via a fresh look, risk segmentation, increased transaction speed, enhanced user experience, and improved security. (Source)
nChain and Transmira joined to form a virtual world of digital twins, providing brands with new ways to interact with users plus enhancing access to nChain's blockchain tech for data security and commerce, with uses in marketing, sports, entertainment, and more. (Source)
🗣️ Quote of the week
“Fan tokens allow sports fans to feel more connected to their favorite sports teams by allowing them to have access to exclusive offers and have a voice in team decisions for the club.“
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All content on this newsletter is for informational purposes only and does not aim to serve as or replace expert investment advice.
If you are a startup building in the metaverse / web3 ecosystem and are raising capital, please reach out to Sfermion. Sfermion is an investment firm focused on accelerating the emergence of the metaverse.
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