It is the first time in chess history that a nonfungible token (NFT) trophy has been handed to a grandmaster for winning an international chess tournament, the Meltwater Champions Chess Tour (MCCT). The tournament produced a number of NFT trophies and memorabilia, which will be kept on display permanently to commemorate the game’s most memorable moments.
As part of his appreciation for the bitcoin ecosystem’s support of virtual chess competitions, Carlsen expressed his gratitude to the audience. According to the world chess champion, MCCT’s new cooperation with the FTX crypto exchange provided an opportunity for professional chess players to fight for a prize pool of 2.1825 Bitcoin (BTC) ($81,079).
“National chess tournaments (NFTs) allow the chess community celebrate exceptional moments and, in some cases, reward individuals who have previously committed a considerable deal of time in advancing the game. Carlsen stated, “With Chess Champs, this is just the beginning, and I am looking forward to watching how it progresses.”
In order to commemorate the winner of the competition, Chess Champs issued two identical editions of the Champion’s Trophy NFT on the Ethereum blockchain, which were digitally signed by Carlsen when he took home the trophy. The second NFT trophy was auctioned off for 6.88 Ether (ETH), which equaled to $24,700 at the time of the auction’s conclusion. According to a source, the bidding for the NFT award increased after the deadline to 11 Ether ($27,093). Carlsen said:
“It feels great to share the trophy with a passionate fan. It will be interesting to play a match with him and meeting him during the next season’s Champions Chess Tour Final.”
On the blockchain, there are also NFTs dedicated to certain chess pieces (such as a pawn and a bishop) that are considered collectibles.
As the non-traditional sports (NFT) boom continues to bridge the gap between sports and digital entertainment, non-traditional sports (NFT) marketplaces provide new opportunities for innovation.
Sorare, a marketplace for NFT trading cards, has been valued at $4.3 billion after obtaining $680 million in Series B funding spearheaded by Japanese financial behemoth SoftBank. Sorare is headquartered in Tokyo. The company intends to utilize the funds to “substantially accelerate the development of women’s sports.”
Furthermore, Sorare has secured partnerships with the La Liga soccer league and expects to bring on top-tier soccer clubs as it expands its NFT-based portfolio offers to other fantasy sports as part of its strategy to diversify its NFT-based portfolio products.
