Premier League Signs NFT Deal With SoftBank-Backed Sorare – Reuters

LONDON, Jan 30 (Reuters) – The Premier League is partnering with French fantasy sports platform Sorare to sell non-fungible tokens (NFTs), a sign that the sporting world is continuing to embrace digital assets despite the rout in markets.

The deal gives Sorare a four-year license to sell digital sports cards of players from all 20 Premier League clubs, Sorare said in a statement on Monday.

Sky News reported in October that the deal could be worth 30 million pounds ($37.13 million) per year. Sorare declined to comment on whether the figure cited by Sky News was accurate.

The cards in Sorare’s game are bought and traded in the form of NFTs, a kind of blockchain-based asset, using either cryptocurrency or traditional currency.

Paris-based Sorare raised $680 million at a $4.3 billion valuation in a 2021 funding round led by SoftBank.

Britain’s gambling watchdog has been investigating Sorare since 2021 to assess whether its game amounts to gambling. Sorare CEO Nicolas Julia said at a journalists’ briefing last week the probe was still ongoing. Elsewhere, France’s gambling regulator told the company in November to make changes to the game, including expanding its free-to-play option.

“The way that supporters follow their favourite teams and players is evolving and the Premier League is always looking for ways to engage with fans,” said Richard Masters, chief executive of the Premier League.

NFT GAMING

NFTs surged in 2021, but prices and sales volumes plunged last year as investors turned cautious and the crypto industry was rocked by a series of high-profile collapses.

Many top soccer teams and sports stars promoted crypto assets – such as NFTs or “fan tokens” – to fans during the boom. Proponents say they can