non-fungible tokens (nfts)

Spanish LaLiga League Joins Hands With Sorare to Launch NFTs for all Players

Spanish LaLiga league, the top football division in Spain whose top scorer is Lionel Messi with 474 goals, has partnered with Ethereum-based fantasy soccer game platform Sorare to establish non-fungible tokens (NFTs) for all its players.

Per the announcement on Thursday:

“LaLiga fans, collectors and fantasy football players will for the first time be able to freely trade and play with digital cards of players from LaLiga.”

This partnership is seen as a stepping stone towards creating new revenue streams for LaLiga clubs. This league is home to world-class football clubs, such as FC Barcelona, Real Madrid, and Atletico Madrid.

Sorare has a mission of collaborating with the rest of the world’s top 20 football leagues like the English Premier League (EPL) by the end of 2022.

Offering fans innovative and exciting experiences

According to LaLiga president, Javier Tebas:

“At LaLiga we are always looking for innovative ways to offer our fans new and exciting experiences and to broaden the appeal of our competition, the greatest in the world.”

On the other hand, the CEO and co-founder of Sorare Nicolas Julia stated:

“NFTs are the future of global sports fandom because they allow fans to come together and to feel ownership of the sports they love.”

Sorare is a fantasy soccer video game founded on the Ethereum blockchain that enables users to build their favourite teams and trade football player cards. These cards are limited and can be transferred as unique non-fungible tokens (NFTs). Moreover, the cards earn points on the foundation of every player’s respective real-world weekly performance.

By creating unique digital tokens and signing top football clubs to its fantasy platform, Sorare seeks to boost NFT and blockchain adoption in daily life. The football player cards used are based on blockchain technology, and they comprise built-in scarcity.

In July, Sorare sought to raise $530 million in financing to enhance its NFT adoption objective.

UNICEF to Commemorate its 75th Anniversary of Changing Children’s Lives by Selling 1,000 NFTs

To celebrate efforts of saving children’s lives and defending their rights for seventy-five years, the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) intends to sell 1,000 data-driven non-fungible tokens (NFTs).

The NFT collection dubbed Patchwork Kingdoms includes artwork representing a subset of more than 280,000 schools across twenty-one nations.

Part of the NFTs will be digitally watermarked to celebrate the agency’s 75th-anniversary, scheduled on December 11. The rest will be tied to events in early 2022.

UNICEF’s executive director, Henrietta Fore, welcomed this move and stated:

“For 75 years, UNICEF has been a driving force for change in children’s lives. And as we look back at our history, we must also look forward and seize every opportunity to take innovative actions to secure the future for our children.”

Reaching out to more children for a better world, UNICEF decided to use NFTs as part of its toolbox to support its global efforts and bridge the digital divide, according to Fore.

Proceeds from the NFT auction will be channelled towards promising initiatives like Giga, an ITU and UNICEF program intended to connect every school worldwide to the internet using cutting-edge technologies like blockchain, machine learning, and low-earth orbit satellites.

Fore acknowledged:

“There are more than 1.3 billion children disconnected in an increasingly connected world. We cannot allow these children to grow up on an information island, cut off from the wealth of information and opportunities available online, and with fewer resources to learn and grow.”

The United Nations has been at the forefront of NFT adoption in realising distinctive objectives. For instance, through its UN-Habitat program, it is taking advantage of NFTs to create awareness about the global climate crisis using an initiative called DigitalArt4 Climate.

NFT Surpasses Crypto and Ethereum in Google Searches

Non-fungible tokens (NFTs) continue to be trending issues. To show their trendiness, NFT Google searches have surpassed those of Ethereum and crypto, according to Google Trends.

Interest for Bitcoin remains steadfast at the first position, with NFTs coming second. Crypto and Ethereum come at the third and fourth positions, respectively.

Source: Google Trends

Asian nations lead in NFT Google search, with Japan, South Korea, and Hong Kong taking the first, second, and third positions, respectively.

Source: Google Trends

The result is based on the fact that NFT adoption has been experiencing an uptick on Asian soil. For instance, the South Korean Movie industry entered the NFT world in December 2021 by offering merchandise and collectable tickets. Therefore, NFTs are deemed a game-changer in the Korean movie sector by attracting more viewers.

Furthermore, Hindustan Times (HT), India’s largest English language newspaper, recently commemorated iconic moments with an NFT collection.

Nigel Green, the CEO of DeVere Group, opined that the NFT boom was instigated by the rally around digital collectables by celebrities around the world, fashion brands, and sports franchises.

Meanwhile, the world’s first NFT museum recently opened its doors in Seattle, Washington, aimed at expanding people’s knowledge base about non-fungible tokens and showcasing works by local and international artists.

The 3,000 square-foot museum is not online and is centred on minting a new art world. Furthermore, it comprises three exhibition platforms where visitors can see 30 NFT artwork displays in each area.

Visa Rolls Out Creator Program to Empower Artists with NFTs

Payment giant Visa has launched an initiative dubbed Visa Creator Program intended to help filmmakers, artists, fashion designers, and musicians revamp their businesses through non-fungible tokens (NFTs).

With a market size of approximately $100 billion, the creator economy is among the fastest-growing areas of small business. Therefore, the Visa program aims to expand the knowledge base of entrepreneurs in this area about how they can enhance their revenue streams with NFTs.

Cuy Sheffield, the head of crypto at Visa, believed this initiative is a game-changer. He noted:

“We’ve been studying the NFT ecosystem and its potential impacts on the future of commerce, retail and social media. Through the Visa Creator Program, we want to help this new breed of small and micro businesses tap into new mediums for digital commerce.”

Sheffield added:

“NFTs have the potential to become a powerful accelerator for the creator economy.”

The proof of ownership concept presented by NFTs is seen as a stepping stone in helping creators grow their businesses and generate more revenue.

Per the announcement:

“The Visa Creator Program is geared towards entrepreneurs working in art, music, fashion and film who are serious about incorporating NFTs into their business model, whether they’ve just minted their first NFT or have several successful drops under their belt.”

The program will aid creators in five main areas: stipend, community building, technical and product mentorship, access to thought leaders, and exposure to Visa’s clients and partners.

Visa stated that selected creators would be enrolled in a cohort-driven program intended to deepen their prowess in traditional payments and crypto commerce.

The proof of ownership notion has been giving NFTs the upper hand. For instance, Caroline Alexander, a finance expert at the University of Sussex, opined that non-fungible tokens would be everywhere in the future because they would dominate the necessity of proof of ownership.

Kia America Deploys NFTs in New Creative Campaign Debuting the New 2023 KIA Soul Model

Kia America, a leading automotive brand, has launched a new creative campaign featuring non-fungible tokens (NFTs) for its iconic 2023 Kia Soul model.

Per the announcement:

“The 30-second spot features NFTs as talent and incorporates a unique QR code embedded into the creative.”

Therefore, viewers will have the opportunity to attain one of the 10,100 Kia-themed NFTs by scanning the QR code using their smartphones. Afterward, the NFTs will be stored in their Sweet blockchain wallet.

Russell Wager, Kia America’s marketing vice president, stated:

“With its iconic style, endless adaptability, capability, and advanced technology, Soul redefined the boxy small-car segment when it was first launched in 2009 and has steadily evolved to appeal to customers across generations with its edgy good looks, practicality, and efficiency.”

The 10,100 Kia NFTs draw inspiration from the DASK digital collectibles and the new 2023 Kia Soul. Wager pointed out:

“The Soul is as individualistic as the NFTs are, and as a brand, Kia is always innovating to stay on the cutting edge.”

Kia’s creative agency called David&Goliath developed the NFTs, which are expected to spur innovation in the automotive brand.

Ben Purcell, the chief creative officer at David&Goliath, noted:

“With Kia, we want the work to be as innovative as the vehicles. So we thought, what if we could be the first to take a few NFTs for a ride? Living, breathing, and of course driving, like never before.”

The NFTs are anticipated to offer viewers a Web3 experience. Tom Mizzone, the CEO and founder of Sweet, acknowledged:

“It’s a significant milestone for mass adoption since it marks the first NFT drop embedded into a national TV commercial. As such, it will be seen by millions of people, many of whom are experiencing the world of Web3 for the first time.”

Meanwhile, Han Sung Motor, a South Korean imported car dealer, recently rolled out NFTs to offer customers a secure and convenient experience based on the option of checking car details using their smartphones.