A first for an award event of this nature, the victors will each get a “digital double” of the Ballon d’Or trophy in the shape of an NFT replica of the trophy.
The organization L’Equipe, which is organizing the competition, announced on Thursday to AFP that this digital trophy will be “unique in its information and permanently anchored on the blockchain.” Blockchain is the technology that is powering the NFT. These tokens secure the formal ownership of a digital asset to its solitary possessor by associating it with an unforgeable certificate of authenticity and associating it with the digital object.
According to the French media organization, this is the first time that an award of this kind has been given out across all industries. The 66th Ballon d’Or will be presented on October 17 at the Chatelet theatre in Paris, at a ceremony that will be aired in nearly 200 different countries. The trophy was established in 1956 by France Football and is currently owned by the L’Équipe group.
In addition to the male and female Ballon d’Or awards, which are presented to the world’s greatest player and the world’s best female player, respectively, the following three prizes will also be given out: The Kopa Trophy, the Machine Trophy, and the Müller Trophy are awarded to the player with the best hope (best striker).
An auction
In addition, L’Equipe will hold an auction open to the general public for several one-of-a-kind digital objects that were designed by the artist Léo Caillard. The auction will take place on a specialized platform that is based on the Tezos blockchain, which is renowned in particular for its low energy consumption. According to L’Equipe, each one of them will come with benefits that may be applied in the actual world.
On September 15, three NFTs called “True Pyrite” will be put up for auction as a result. These NFTs depict in three dimensions the precious stones that make up the base of the coveted trophy. The possessor of one of these NFTs will be granted “VIP access” to the ceremony on October 17. The next step will take place on October 23-24, when 1,872 NFTs known as “Pyrite Shards” will be put up for sale in two separate rounds. Last but not least, on November 8, during the yearly traditional auction of single-print art images held by the L’Équipe group, two “artistic” NFT tickets that grant entrance to the Ballon d’Or ceremony in 2023 will be made available to bidders.
“The strength of sport in the NFT context is that we can offer a digital asset to which we can add utilities that already exist in the physical world to endow them with an even greater value and appeal.”
Emilie Montané, who is the head of strategy and growth for the L’Equipe company, elucidated the situation for AFP.
Attract a younger target
The leader’s goal is to increase awareness of the “Mark” Ballon d’Or with”from another target” and bring the event to life “all year,” and he intends to do so beyond the scope of football fans across the world. We believe that by carrying out this strategy, we will be able to invigorate our audience and approach a more connected goal. She argued that it was significant for both of us.
“This first collection calls for others because the Ballon d’Or, and more broadly the group L’Équipe and the Amaury group, wish to project themselves sustainably into the world of Web3,” the new age of decentralized internet, the media group emphasized for its part. “This first collection calls for others because the Ballon d’Or, and more broadly the group L’Équipe and the Amaury group, wish to project themselves into the world of Web3.”
