How is Web3 "participating" in the globally watched World Cup?

Original: 《World Cup, the Global Stage Targeted by Web3》

Author: Tangyuan, Hive Tech

The FIFA World Cup, a sports extravaganza held every four years, is attracting global attention, whether you are a fan or not. Observing the World Cup, it is not difficult to find that various Web3 elements encompassing blockchain and crypto are appearing in various ways both on and off the field.

Banner ads from the crypto asset trading platform Crypto.com are seen on the green pitch; Adidas showcases its NFT digital brand image Indigo Hertz in World Cup advertisements; Budweiser collaborates with FIFA to launch the real-time scoreboard NFT "Budverse x FIFAWorldCup Live Scoreboard"; Qatar World Cup partner Visa launches commemorative NFT collectibles featuring classic goals from five stars including Michael Owen…

In addition to brand manufacturers, participating stars are using NFT to market their personal brands. Portuguese football superstar Cristiano Ronaldo announces a collaboration with Binance to issue an NFT series documenting important moments in his life; Brazilian star Neymar will launch an NFT series "Beastmode Metaverse x Neymar Jr" during the World Cup; Argentine star Lionel Messi announces an investment in the football blockchain game Sorare and serves as a brand ambassador…

Traditional brands leverage crypto to show they are keeping up with new trends, while crypto brands hope to achieve global exposure through the World Cup. So, besides marketing, what other Web3 applications are active during the World Cup?

Fan Token Speculation Cools Down

According to crypto asset data platform CoinGecko, on the opening day of the World Cup, the total market value of fan tokens in the football sector fell by over 35%, currently standing at $280 million. As of November 27, the football segment of fan tokens has experienced varying degrees of decline, with the Portugal national team token POR dropping 40.3% in the past week to $3.7; the Argentina Football Association token ARG falling 50.5% in the past week, fluctuating around $4.2; and the Brazil national football team token BFT declining 58.6% in the past week to $0.43… Meanwhile, the underlying token CHZ of the fan token issuing protocol Chiliz has dropped 29.7% in the past week, hovering around $0.17.

The surge in fan tokens in the football sector did not occur during the World Cup matches but rather a month before the tournament, when many fan tokens soared in price, revealing speculative characteristics.

Fan tokens are a type of crypto asset typically issued by celebrities or organizations with IP attributes using blockchain networks or protocols. They are one of the products of the fan economy, generally providing exclusive benefits to fans. In the football sector, some clubs, teams, or players issue tokens to fans, connecting with them while raising funds and granting token holders certain rights, such as participating in meet-and-greets or voting on club matters.

In the previous fan economy, whether for teams or bands, the economic relationship with their fans was primarily consumption-based, such as purchasing tickets to watch matches or performances, as well as authorized merchandise. With the emergence of blockchain and crypto assets, some IP entities attempt to leverage tokens issued on public chain networks to expand capital operation space, reduce intermediaries, break geographical limitations for fans, and change payment methods for IP consumer goods.

Of course, some IP entities do grant rights to token holders, but in practice, fans have very limited decision-making power over the entities, which instead leads to increased economic benefits for the entities. Teams or clubs issuing fan tokens directly monetize from fans using tokens, bypassing brand agents and allowing external parties to complete brand consumption directly with tokens, such as exchanging fan tokens for broadcasting rights, naming rights, or purchasing club merchandise and services.

Data from the fan token application Socios shows that various fan tokens generated $200 million in revenue for partner clubs in 2021. Currently, Socios has issued over 50 types of fan tokens, including the Argentina Football Association token ARG, which is a national team fan token, as well as fan tokens for globally renowned football clubs like Manchester City (CITY) and Barcelona (BAR). Through fan tokens, Paris Saint-Germain fans can access VIP experiences provided by the club; Manchester City fans can vote on which player can have their photo displayed at Wembley Stadium, while Inter Milan fans voted for the goal celebration song.

Socios is built on the Chiliz public chain, designed specifically for the sports and entertainment industry, providing customized fan token issuance, trading, and operational services. It is evident that from the underlying network to application products, the fan economy has developed a set of viable Web3 infrastructure.

However, from the trading market during the World Cup, the speculative nature of fan tokens remains prominent. When speculation affects the market, fans holding tokens may face economic losses, impacting their holding experience.

Football NFTs Focus on Collectibility

As fan tokens reveal their speculative nature during the World Cup, non-fungible crypto assets (NFTs) attempt to attract fans with their collectibility, highlighting the commemorative significance of the World Cup. Some platforms are launching such NFTs.

FIFA's Official NFT Platform FIFA+Collect

FIFA+Collect is the NFT collection platform launched by the International Football Federation on the Algorand blockchain network. The platform officially went live in September this year, planning to record the exciting moments of this World Cup and other historical moments in football as NFTs for football enthusiasts to purchase, collect, or trade.

"FIFA+" is a digital video streaming platform launched by FIFA in April this year, providing information, news, and interactive games about football events worldwide. The launch of FIFA+Collect in September signifies that this platform is beginning to use NFTs as a new medium to connect with audiences. By registering for a FIFA+ account, users can select their favorite NFTs and purchase them using fiat currencies like USD or GBP.

As of November 25, FIFA+Collect has issued four NFT series—Genesis, FIFA Archives, FIFA Archives 2, and South American Flair. These NFTs are presented in video format, capturing exciting moments in football history and iconic player actions, such as the greatest goals, saves, and trophy lifts, allowing holders to collect these moments as NFTs.

Football Video NFT Platform RealFevr

During the World Cup, video NFTs on RealFevr are also selling well, with over 145,000 sold to date.

RealFevr was originally established in 2015 as a football gaming company, with its fantasy league game (RealFevr Fantasy) downloaded over 2 million times. In 2021, the company officially entered the Web3 space, aiming to reconstruct the business model of the sports market using blockchain technology, quickly launching a football video NFT market on the BNB Chain blockchain network.

RealFevr issues video NFTs that capture exciting moments of football stars for fans to collect or trade. To obtain video copyrights, the platform has established IP partnerships with the Portuguese Primeira Liga, the Portuguese Football Federation, and Torino Football Club.

If FIFA+Collect's NFTs focus on historic moments on the pitch, the commercial RealFevr captures the essence of IP, using the exciting moments of stars as the core content of its NFTs.

NFTs are just the first step. As a gaming company, RealFevr plans to launch a "Play to Earn" game called FEVR Battle Arena, integrating the already issued NFTs into the game, allowing users to form teams with their star NFTs and compete against each other for rewards, highlighting the "play and earn" feature of Web3 games.

FIFA Enters the Metaverse via the World Cup

In addition to crypto assets, the metaverse is also serving as a window to showcase its charm alongside the World Cup. Notably, FIFA has begun to enter the metaverse, with games and social interactions as the bridge. The official website shows that FIFA has authorized the launch of four Web3 applications encompassing games and social interactions, namely the Upland metaverse football showroom, AI League metaverse football battle game, card game Matchday, and the fan social section of Phygtl.

Games Authorized by FIFA

Upland's Lusail Stadium Virtual Showroom

Upland is a metaverse game that operates virtual real estate, with gameplay similar to Monopoly. The buildings in the game are 1:1 mapped from real cities, and players buy land, build houses, sell or rent properties through strategy; land and buildings are NFTs.

During the World Cup, Upland collaborated with FIFA to recreate the metaverse space of Lusail Stadium in Qatar, showcasing brand villages and stores in partnership with FIFA. Players can enter this space to purchase football-related digital goods to decorate the buildings they construct in Upland.

AI League Metaverse Football Game

AI League is a 4v4 football game where virtual players are NFT assets with different 3D appearances and outfits. Players build teams using their collected NFT players, controlling their characters (coach or club manager) with AI technology to direct players in battles or manage the team. Players can also predict World Cup match scores on the AI League platform to earn points, which can then be used to unlock original outfits with World Cup elements for their players.

Altered State Machine (ASM) is the development team behind the AI League game, aiming to create an AI-driven metaverse platform, hoping to explore the potential of virtual characters within the metaverse through machine learning, such as implanting AI brains into NFT-ified virtual characters to make these "people" in the metaverse intelligent.

Football Card Game Match Day

MatchDay is a football card game built on the Solana blockchain network, minting player cards as NFTs available for players to purchase and collect. Players act as "club managers," operating teams and participating in matches set by the platform to earn NFTs or other crypto asset rewards.

Recently, MatchDay launched player card NFTs for participants in the Qatar World Cup. In addition to allowing players to purchase cards for daily matches, the platform introduced a World Cup score prediction game, where players who guess correctly can earn points, with the highest-scoring players eligible for prizes. Currently, MatchDay offers new registered players some player card NFTs for free to participate in the game.

Fan Social Platform Phygtl

Phygtl is originally a metaverse social platform aimed at enabling traditional consumers to experience the metaverse through AR and Web3 technologies, thus becoming ecosystem builders. During the World Cup, Phygtl collaborated with FIFA to launch a fan interaction center (page) in the form of a digital Ballon d'Or.

The digital NFT of the Ballon d'Or will be co-created by fans, composed of various fragments. Fans can mint their photos, videos, and creative works related to the World Cup into NFTs, forming one of the fragments of this award, uploading them to Phygtl's World Cup page, ultimately creating a user-generated digital NFT of the Ballon d'Or. Taking advantage of the global event of the World Cup, Phygtl hopes to enrich the creativity of NFTs and showcase the globalization of Web3 connections.