What major sports are paying athletes in crypto?

After suffering important losses owed to issues stemming from the COVID-19 pandemic, the sports manufacture has turned to crypto to recoup its losses and assistance fans enactment connected with clubs successful today’s socially-distanced world.

Over the past 18 months, countless deals and sponsorships person been reported betwixt Web3 projects and sports teams, and if things spell arsenic planned, this mightiness beryllium conscionable the extremity of the iceberg for these 2 industries.

With the prices of Bitcoin and memecoins similar Dogecoin (DOGE) and Shiba Inu (SHIB) exploding, projects are starting to recognize the value of a loyal assemblage and are making each the indispensable moves to physique and prolong a devoted instrumentality basal — thing sports teams person had figured retired for immoderate clip now.

Crypto.com and Coinbase spent $6.5 cardinal connected 30-second advertisement spots during this year’s Super Bowl. One sports analytics steadfast adjacent claims that crypto deals successful the sports satellite are expected to transverse $5 cardinal successful gross by 2026.

For the fans

When the connection “crypto” is utilized successful sports, it doesn’t conscionable notation to regular cryptocurrencies but also to nonfungible tokens (NFTs) and instrumentality tokens, which athletes and clubs make to summation instrumentality engagement. These tokens let holders to summation exclusive benefits specified arsenic voting connected the opus to beryllium played astatine the stadium earlier a lucifer begins. 

Besides instrumentality tokens, the sports betting scenery is besides getting overmuch attraction from the blockchain industry. With crypto sports betting, radical tin stake connected the outcomes of sports events oregon league rankings, paid retired successful cryptocurrencies specified arsenic Bitcoin (BTC), Ether (ETH) and Litecoin (LTC). While this mightiness not dependable revolutionary, it has a important interaction connected cryptocurrency adoption.

Crypto sports betting allows for a safer betting acquisition for sports fans truthful that sportsbooks tin bask enhanced security, thing that accepted betting methods failed to provide. Moreover, since cryptocurrencies tin beryllium accepted virtually everywhere, radical from crossed the globe tin participate.

NFTs person proven rather a lucrative concern successful the satellite of sports. NBA prima LeBron James sold a video of himself performing a reverse-windmill dunk for implicit $100,000 arsenic an NFT, and that’s acold from the lone illustration of athletes cashing successful connected the NFT hype. There’s adjacent an wholly abstracted marketplace for it.

NBA TopShot is an NFT level that lets radical “own basketball's top moments” arsenic NFTs, and successful little than a year, the level has earned implicit $700 cardinal successful sales. Additionally, assorted sports teams person besides released their ain NFT collections, with San Francisco NBA squad Golden State Warriors being the first.

Owning your salary

The inclination of paying athletes’ salaries successful crypto, each oregon successful part, became overmuch much prevalent aft the full token marketplace headdress crossed $3 trillion successful 2021. The NFL’s Odell Beckham Jr. was 1 of the archetypal players who agreed to take his $750,000 wage successful Bitcoin. A perchance important crushed for players accepting these deals is the rising ostentation complaint of the United States dollar, which efficaciously decreases the worth of their paycheck implicit time.

Saquon Barkley, different jock who said he’d beryllium taking each endorsements successful Bitcoin, spoke to Best Business Show big Anthony Pompliano, explaining his decision. “You spot inflation, you spot however precocious it is close present and you larn that you can’t prevention yourself to wealth. That’s wherefore I’m going to beryllium taking my selling wealth successful Bitcoin.”

Here are immoderate different athletes getting paid successful crypto:

Russel Okung

While playing for the Carolina Panthers successful 2019, Okung demanded helium is paid successful Bitcoin. Shortly afterward, helium became 1 of the first-ever athletes successful large American sports to beryllium paid successful cryptocurrency. He converted his $13 cardinal wage into BTC via the crypto wallet Zap. Bitcoin’s terms was astir $27,000 erstwhile Okung converted his salary.

Russell Okung with the Denver Broncos successful 2016. Source: Jeffrey Beall

Trevor Lawrence 

After signing a declaration with Jacksonville Jaguars, 21-year-old Trevor Lawrence converted his signing bonus into cryptocurrency. Lawrence volition beryllium paid via the cryptocurrency app Blockfolio successful Bitcoin, Ether and Solana (SOL). The deal’s presumption haven’t been publically revealed, but his bonuses are estimated to beryllium worthy astir $24 million. 

Aaron Rodgers 

Aaron Rodgers, Green Bay Packers quarterback, announced connected Twitter past twelvemonth successful November that helium would beryllium taking portion of his wage successful Bitcoin, partnering with mobile payments level Cash App. At the time, Rodgers’ declaration was paying him an yearly wage of $33.5 million. Along with the announcement, Rodgers besides mentioned that helium “believes successful Bitcoin” and that “the aboriginal is bright.”

Aaron Rogers with the Green Bay Packers successful 2021. Source: All-Pro Reels

Sean Culkin

Kansas City Chiefs choky extremity Sean Culkin is taking his $920,000 wage successful Bitcoin done the Strike cryptocurrency app. He released a connection saying, “Considering my vocation — peculiarly its carnal demands and brevity — it makes the astir logical consciousness to beryllium paid successful dependable wealth that I judge protects its purchasing powerfulness implicit time.”

Shohei Ohtani

Los Angeles Angels shot superstar Shohei Ohtani took a involvement successful the cryptocurrency speech FTX and volition beryllium moving arsenic a planetary ambassador for the company, receiving his compensation for the concern wholly successful crypto. For his publication to the company, FTX has dubbed him “The Great Cryptohtani.”

Cade Cunningham 

NBA rising prima Cade Cunningham signed a multi-year woody with cryptocurrency level BlockFi successful 2021. As portion of the deal, Cunningham volition collaborate with BlockFi to nutrient acquisition videos portion participating successful promotional giveaways and exclusive interviews. Cunningham has an yearly wage of astir $10 million, but it’s unclear however overmuch he’ll beryllium getting paid successful crypto done his concern with BlockFi.

Andre Iguodala

NBA prima Andre Iguodala took to Twitter earlier this twelvemonth to announce that he’d beryllium taking portion of his wage successful Bitcoin. The Golden State Warriors subordinate partnered with Cash App to person his wage into cryptocurrency, and helium adjacent said he’d beryllium giving distant $1 cardinal worthy of Bitcoin to his fans. 

I’m excited to denote I’m taking portion of my wage successful BITCOIN w. Cash App! Bitcoin is the future, @klaythompson and I are some believers. To marque bitcoin much accessible, we're giving retired $1M successful bitcoin backmost to fans today. Drop your $cashtag w. #PaidInBitcoin & travel @CashApp

— andre (@andre) January 10, 2022

Athletes getting paid successful cryptocurrency would’ve been inconceivable 3 years ago, but the satellite is astatine a signifier wherever it’s hard to disregard blockchain technology’s potential. Players getting paid successful cryptocurrencies genuinely judge successful the exertion and that blockchain volition find its spot wrong our planetary fiscal system. 

As Web3 marches connected done its ideation phase, we should proceed to spot crypto outgo methods evolve. People worth safety, velocity and control, supra each else, and crypto provides each three. This could explicate wherefore the request for getting paid successful crypto is growing, particularly among the affluent young.