NFL Quietly Launches NFTs With Ticketmaster: What Investors and Collectors Should Know

Arizona Cardinals quarterback Colt McCoy scrambles against the Seattle Seahawks during the first half of an NFL football game in Seattle, on Nov. 21, 2021. Ted S. Warren/AP Photo

One of the largest sports leagues in the world quietly dropped NFTs through a partnership with a leading ticketing company on Thursday.

What Happened:

The National Football League (NFL) partnered with Ticketmaster, a unit of Live Nation Entertainment, Inc., to launch virtual commemorative tickets.

The first virtual commemorative ticket game happened on Nov. 7 in a match between the Arizona Cardinals and San Francisco 49ers. Fans who attended the game in person can get a virtual commemorative ticket from the game.

The NFL will offer more virtual commemorative tickets going forward with matchups varying week to week. The current NFL week features commemorative tickets for the Thanksgiving Day matchup between the Chicago Bears and Detroit Lions and the Monday Night Football game between the Seattle Seahawks and Washington Football Team.

“Leveraging the emerging world of NFTs is a new and exciting way for us to create additional value and to further engage with fans who attend select games by providing a virtual commemorative ticket,” NFL Club Business Development Senior Vice President Bobby Gallo said.

Along with the virtual tickets, the NFL quietly dropped 125 commemorative NFTs for each NFL team on Thursday. The drop happened quietly where fans could buy a ticket NFT for $10 using a credit card for payment. The NFTs are hosted on the Polygon blockchain.

The NFTs quickly sold out and saw some huge sales prices. Not many of the teams announced the NFTs and several that did, including the New York Jets, provided a link but no time for the launch.

Some NFL ticket NFTs sold for up to $9,999 each with buyers searching for serial numbers matching player jersey numbers and Super Bowl-winning years and games.

Several teams still have their lowest listing above $600 including the New England Patriots ($699), Green Bay Packers ($799), Los Angeles Rams ($750), Seattle Seahawks ($699), Arizona Cardinals ($990), and Dallas Cowboys ($999).

The lowest-priced teams are the Atlanta Falcons ($215), Washington Football Team ($230), and Jacksonville Jaguars ($250).

With only 125 of this initial NFL NFT offered for each team, the price could end up being a bargain in the future.

Why It’s Important:

This marks the first big step by the NFL in the NFT market. The company signed a deal with NBA Top Shot parent company Dapper Labs earlier this year to launch NFT packs featuring top moments from games.

NFL NFTs from Dapper Labs are expected to be released in the current season, which ends in February.

Ticketmaster has started to get more aggressive in the NFT space, with digital collectibles for sporting events and concerts a new monetizable business line for the ticketing and venue company.

LYV Price Action:

Live Nation Entertainment shares closed flat on Monday at $112.11. Shares have traded between $64.92 and $127.75 over the last 52 weeks.

By Chris Katje

© 2021 The Epoch Times. The Epoch Times does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.