Technology companies have often utilised the captive audiences of sports as a sandbox, illustration and advertisement from which to promote emerging technologies. The metaverse has become the newest macro-goal for many of the world's tech giants and, as a result, commercial opportunities are quickly being seized upon in the sports and entertainment industry. This briefing analyses the current state of play, future opportunities and challenges for sports properties.
This report comes in PPT.
Technology companies have often utilised the captive audiences of sports as a sandbox, illustration and advertisement from which to test and promote emerging technologies. Creating the metaverse will greatly expand this already existing synergy.
In 2019, over 41 million fans attended a top-flight football match in Europe, while at the same, time in the US, around 70 million fans attended a baseball game. The ability to attend live sports was massively hindered by the pandemic, but all indicators show that the appetite for the “real” experience has not dissipated.
Flagship sponsorships from cryptocurrency exchanges, with the likes of the UFC and Formula 1, the rise of tradeable NFT sports collectibles, and a sustained push by legacy sports into the world of competitive esports all signal the eagerness with which sports properties are seizing the opportunity to grow digital revenues post-pandemic.
Current sketches of the metaverse have thus far failed to consider the seismic challenges in terms of connectivity, computational power and energy required to bring about the metaverse. From a professional sports perspective, fans are often fickle and (not unlike consumers more generally) have real concerns regarding trust and transparency, not to mention a lingering digital fatigue that was increased by the pandemic.
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