Earlier this year, we reported on an interesting new collaboration between DraftKings and NFT (non-fungible tokens) platform Autograph, co-founded by NFL quarterback Tom Brady. 

Last week, DraftKings expanded on its platform by unveiling plans to launch a gamified NFT collection featuring NFL players during the upcoming season.

DraftKings has signed a deal with the NFL Players Association, represented by its licensing partner OneTeam Partners, to launch gamified NFTs on the DraftKings Marketplace during the 2022/23 NFL season.

The deal grants DraftKings the rights to the intellectual property of all 2,000 NFL players active today, with the option to gamify digital player cards in a new blockchain product.

As per Beth Beiriger, senior VP of Product Operations for DraftKings Marketplace, in a :

“The future of fandom is unfolding in front of us, and few organizations beyond DraftKings are as equipped to capitalize on the increasing intersection between sports and NFTs that will be cornerstones of engagement and entertainment within Web3.”

“We will continuously adapt, innovate and seek progressive collaborators like the NFLPA and OneTeam to reach early adopters among fanbases and ultimately introduce these next-generation products to the masses.”

According to the head of business affairs at NFL Players Inc. (the marketing and licensing arm of NFLPA), Sean C. Sansiveri, the association strives to be at the forefront of innovative new products and the emerging landscape of digital entertainment that creates excitement and interaction among players and fans.

“We look forward to integrating NFL players into DraftKings’ NFT experience to create authentic connections for avid fans,” he said.

Highlights of the NFLPA-DraftKings Deal

• Customers will be able to use these collectibles within games against others on the platform.
• They will also be able to buy and sell them separately.
• There will be a variety of NFT editions and tiers which incorporate different aspects of utility and digital scarcity. These will be powered by Polygon, with whom DraftKings has a strategic agreement to provide an eco-friendly blockchain solution.
• The NFL player NFT integration will coincide with the sports betting and gaming company’s existing NFL designations, including becoming the league’s Official Daily Fantasy and Sports Betting Partner.

Growth of Blockchain and Crypto Space

DraftKing’s Beth Beiriger recently that the industry has undergone incredible growth in the blockchain and crypto space in the past 9 – 12 months.

“We’re a tech company,” she said. “This partnership with the NFLPA will allow us to bring incredible IP into this new emerging technology.”

In August this year, the DraftKings NFT Marketplace was launched as an online shop for sports NFTs. Users can purchase digital sports memorabilia assets on the platform, including exclusive video content of Olympic gymnast Simone Biles.

DraftKings customers can use their wallets to buy NFTs in fiat currency, either via mobile or desktop versions of the site.

DraftKings NFT Marketplace is already extremely popular, with some 1.1 million monthly paying users.

Maintaining Market Dominance

While the Marketplace has been a success story from the start, DraftKings will need to work hard to maintain its dominance in the market.

The group is up against companies such a Dapper Labs, operator of NBA Topshots, where users get to unpack virtual packets of video moments from iconic NBA games. Dapper Labs, which currently boasts 800,000 registered users and 9-figure monthly sales, recently signed a deal with the Spanish La Liga to bring similar products to European soccer league fans.

DraftKings will also need to assert itself against OpenSea, considered the globe’s biggest NFT marketplace, as well as Axie Infinity, ZED Run, and Sorare, all of which are adapters of NFT collectibles and fantasy sports.

Fanatics, who recently lost out on a New York mobile sports betting license, is another group to watch out for next year. Jay-Z and other investors in the sports merchandise company  – which is valued at $18 billion – will get exclusive rights to the image of MLB players, and it’s expected that the group will make a play for blockchain fantasy sports in 2022.

Seeing the success of tech companies such as DraftKings and its rivals, traditional gaming and betting groups will undoubtedly also want a piece of the very lucrative crypto gaming space pie.

The inevitable convergence between collectibles and gambling is one of the bigger stories that we don’t hear much about status quo.

That will change in a big way in the year ahead as operators like DraftKings come under pressure to redefine their TAM and expand player values.

— Chris Grove (@OPReport)

Or, as  EA CEO, Andrew Wilson , “Collectible digital content is going to play a meaningful part in our future.”