DeFi
Fan-backed NFT platform Candy Digital reaches deal with MLB to trade non-fungible tokens
Non-fungible tokens (NFTs) are gaining more widespread adoption every day, with the latest being Candy Digital.
Candy Digital launches with Lou Gehrig’s speech
In the latest round of investment in the burgeoning NFT subsector, popular sporting goods company Fanatics has partnered with Mike Novogratz’s Galaxy Digital and VaynerX’s Gary Vaynerchuk to create an NFT platform called Candy Digital.
According to a Major League Baseball (MLB) publication, the company will focus on producing sports NFTs and has already reached an agreement with the baseball association.
Candy Digital will launch its platform with a one-on-one speech of MLB Hall of Fame player Lou Gehrig’s rendition of “Luckiest Man” on July 4, 1939, after Gehrig was forced to retire due to ALS (popularly called Lou Gehrig’s disease). Proceeds will be used to support ALS charities.
Candy Digital says MLB fans will easily buy, collect, view and trade NFTs.
The NFT platform will be hosted on layer two scaling solutions such as Polygon and Immutable X on the popular Ethereum decentralized application platform (Dapps). According to Candy Digital, it seeks to facilitate low gas rates, faster transaction resolution, and be 99% less energy demanding than the proof-of-work (PoW) that the Ethereum network currently operates on.
Fanatics is a majority shareholder in the joint venture with its chairman Michael Rubin and Mike Novogratz as co-chairs of the NFT startup. Gary Vaynerchuk will serve as a member of the board.
Speaking about the new development, Michael Rubin said that Candy Digital aims to allow anyone to own a piece of their passion in whatever field they love. He also noted that the MLB partnership combines passion, community, innovation, and digital transformation.
MLB is not a new face in the crypto space. Back in 2018, the baseball league launched a cryptocurrency game called MLB Crypto Baseball, which it later redesigned as MLB Champions. However, it was suspended because the company was not getting the necessary momentum.
It also launched a collection of NFT cards on the WAX blockchain in April.
Sports that capitalize on the NFT frenzy
NFTs are unique digital collectibles that represent real-life assets. They are stored on the blockchain and are rare in that they cannot be split.
The nascent subsector gained significant momentum after digital artist Beeple sold his 5000 Days NFT for $ 69.3 million.
The sports world has taken advantage of the NFT craze, and the National Basketball Association (NBA) is a major player in this space. Its online marketplace, NBA Top Shot, has grossed more than $ 700 million in sales in the past six months from player highlight videos.
The NFT market doesn’t stop here. The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) is reportedly watching the NFT space alongside Major League Soccer (MLS).
Jimmy Aki
Jimmy has been following the development of blockchain for several years and is optimistic about its potential to democratize the financial system. When you’re not immersed in the daily events of the crypto scene, you can be found watching legal reruns or trying to beat your high Scrabble score.
