The emerging trend of Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs) has gained significant traction in the world of sports, with high-profile athletes like Tom Brady becoming key players in this digital marketplace. Recently, a notable NFT featuring Tom Brady was sold for $40,000 just ahead of the Super Bowl. This sale highlights the growing interest and value placed on digital collectibles within the sports community.
NFTs steal the spotlight with support from legends Joe Montana & John Elway
Dapper Labs, a well-known blockchain company in the NFT ecosystem, has revived NFTs phenomena ahead of Sunday’s Super Bowl. According to reports, the NFTs creator is using the event to promote promotional drops associated with the huge athletic event.
First and foremost, the web3 firm’s sports-themed, digital-collectible brand known as NFL All Day issued promotional packs of NFTs during the professional football league’s playoffs in January, which appears to have helped the collection score a couple of high-profile sales, including a non-fungible token featuring Tom Brady, which sold for more than $40,000, according to the company.
According to Dapper Labs, a comparable NFT featuring quarterback Aaron Rodgers also sold for $34,000.
According to reports, Dapper Labs NFT All Day, which sells digital memorabilia of video highlights on an open marketplace, has sold roughly $10 million since the NFL regular season began in September.
The growing momentum in Dapper Labs’ promotional activities suggests that the Web3 business intends to capitalize on America’s largest athletic event to its advantage.
The Super Bowl is one of America’s most important sporting events, and the San Francisco 49ers will face the Kansas City Chiefs on Sunday in Las Vegas. It is a sporting event that many people believe is a feasible annual marketing opportunity in the United States.
According to reports, the blockchain startup has created NFTs depicting historic moments in the careers of all-time great, Super Bowl-winning quarterbacks such as Joe Montana and John Elway.
In addition to the released NFTs, Dapper Labs persuaded two Hall of Fame, inductees, to promote the digital collectibles, as seen in a post by NFL All Day on X (previously Twitter). The event could signal a return for NFTs after a prolonged slump in the digital collectible market since the bad market.
More celebs, less crypto at Super Bowl 2024
It’s worth mentioning that Dapper Labs, like Montana and Elway, avoided using the abbreviation for non-fungible tokens (NFT) when promoting its collections. During the crypto depression, the term “NFT” developed a poor connotation in the eyes of some people.
Dapper Labs’ ability to persuade sports icons to promote its digital products, which are minted on the Flow blockchain, could be regarded as a victory in the Web3 space.
According to a report by CNN from February 2, several companies that announced commercial slots for the big game in 2024 are unrelated to financial technology. According to Paul Hardart, a clinical professor of marketing at New York University’s Stern School of Business, “fun, humor, and entertainment” will most likely be the subject of Super Bowl LVIII advertising.
The absence of crypto ads indicates a “notable shift away” from artificial intelligence (AI) and crypto entities.
Crypto entities such as FTX, eToro, Crypto.com, and Coinbase premiered ads during Super Bowl LVI in 2022. Larry David, a comedian, claimed in 2024 that he was “an idiot” for appearing in the hilarious FTX ad, which caused multiple lawsuits launched by investors following the crypto exchange’s collapse.
BMW, Budweiser, State Farm, Oreo, DoorDash, and Hellman’s Mayonnaise are among the advertisements set to air in 2024. A 30-second spot will reportedly cost up to $7 million.
The game is expected to draw a big viewership, partly due to the arrival of singer-songwriter Taylor Swift, whose partner Travis Kelce plays tight end for the Chiefs. Swift will fly straight to Las Vegas from Japan, where she has a concert booked for the day before start.
Additionally, beauty firms such as NYX and e.l.f. bought ad slots to capitalize on those younger, typically female Swifties.
