Crypto is slowly affecting every market, and one of the biggest supporters of this technology is the sports industry. Basketball wasn't the first sport affected by cryptocurrencies, but it is slowly accepting and adapting to its increased prevalence. The difficult part is to make it legit, so there are legal obstacles that are somehow avoided because a lot of people believe it will become an ordinary currency at one point.
There's a huge chance it will affect lower leagues than the NBA, like college basketball, because sponsors could reach them more effectively. There's a lot of money in betting on march madness, and crypto casinos are making a huge profit which they are trying to return to the leagues.
The great thing is that there are no bad effects on the industry from the crypto side because the only thing they are bringing in is money and interesting new things to engage fans. There are new games, trading cards, and sponsorships for the teams coming from the crypto companies.
Player Sponsorships
The first and most important thing is that some players could get paid in crypto to promote some companies. They won't be able to mention cryptocurrency in their promotion, but they can mention blockchain technology and the company's name. This rule is set in the NFL and will probably be applied to other sports.
These sponsorships are much better than those of college players because the companies are willing to invest more in the professional game. Some sponsorships are worth billions of dollars and are just starting to get invested in sports, so there's a lot of room for improvement and growth.
Crypto Basketball Games
For game enthusiasts, there is some great news in 2023 regarding basketball. There are speculations that NBA will collaborate with a few companies to create a basketball game based on blockchain technology. This probably means that a certain cryptocurrency will be used as an in-game currency that players will use for buying players or other items.
Another important thing to mention is that some of the items will be NFTs which means that they can be traded, and the price will differ depending on the market. If the NBA decides to do this, it will be a huge boost for the crypto community, which has had a lot of bad news in the past couple of years.
The NBA isn't the only league that will create a crypto-based game; the NFL and NHL will do the same if they get the opportunity, which will probably happen after these companies see the results from the NBA game.
Trading Cards
Trading cards are a part of everyone's childhood, which the NFT market knows and uses as a base for sports NFTs. MLB NFT cards have already been created, and there are many on the market that you can buy right away, but the league doesn't officially make them or endorse them. The NFL is looking to create official trading cards, and the same goes for NBA.
If they can create a game, they can do the same with trading cards that will probably reach thousands of dollars in value on the first day. NFTs are a huge part of the crypto market, and it will become huge again when virtual reality becomes a thing, and people start to use NFTs as a part of their design in VR.
Crypto Casinos
For those that like gambling, crypto casinos have many basketball-based offers with great odds. There's a huge difference between crypto and ordinary casinos, but some people have trouble adapting to these changes. For those who already have a wallet, creating an account and depositing funds is easy. On the other side, those unfamiliar with crypto need to learn a few things before registering.
An advantage is that you don't need to provide any personal information to make an account, and it's more secure. You can see every transaction and where it is going if you are interested in knowing this. Another great thing is that people that are working on these websites have more knowledge about making the process quicker and more efficient.