Dubai is, again, set to make global headlines – this time for a new innovation in blockchain technology, with the city-headquartered Atleta Network launching the first blockchain platform for the sports industry, marking the beginning of the sports industry’s transition into Web3.
The milestone project, supported by football legends like Kevin Kuranyi, Romario, David Trezeguet, Wesley Sneijder, and Marco Materazzi, is expected to bring about a major transformation in the sports industry, enabling organisations to develop smart contracts, issue tokens, and boost transparency in financial operations.
The new initiative is also set to transform lives, with fans being able to support players’ careers and blockchain-supported sports academies able to hone the skills of hundreds of talented, underprivileged teenagers, guided by top coaches and cutting-edge technology, through a token subscription funding model.
“The Atleta Network can serve both enterprises and regular users,” Dmitriy Saksonov, Founder of Atleta Network, told Arabian Business.
“Sports organisations can use it to develop smart contracts, issue tokens, and enhance financial operations with high transparency, while users can support their favourite players’ career paths via smart contracts, buy digital collectibles of BC [blockchain] sports academies’ players, and get rewards for their favourite players’ professional achievements,” he said.
Saksonov said people can support the rising stars through NFT (non-fungible token) purchases, not only aiding their development but also potentially sharing in their future success.
Fans can also collect digital memorabilia.
Blockchain initiative already luring global football clubs, sports legends
This comes on the heels of the recent launch of the blockchain sports project at the CocaCola Arena in Dubai. The project has already caught the attention of some of the leading global football clubs, including FC Barcelona and Liverpool, and major leagues such as La Liga and NBA reportedly applying blockchain for sports NFTs, ticketing and fan engagement.
The Dubai launch saw the participation of thousands of investors, legendary football players such as Kevin Kuranyi, Romario, David Trezeguet, Westley Sneijder and Marco Materazzi, and tech leaders, joining the project as ambassadors and curators.
Atleta Network executives said the project’s impact also extends further with cross-jurisdictional intellectual property defense certification and evaluation by the UAE-based legal consortium, Sanjar Group.
They said the project’s followers can get Atleta’s whitelist NFTs until this month, which are available on the company’s official website. To mint one, a user should complete several quests.
The whitelist NFT holders will be granted priority access to Atleta’s testnet and will receive a multiplier to score more points for the actions on the testnet.
Athlete scouting service, 20 football academies around the world on the cards
Saksonov said Atleta Network’s near-future plans include developing a bespoke athlete scouting service and launching the blockchain testnet.
The ambitious roadmap revealed by the company CEO also includes the opening of 20 additional football academies worldwide in 2024.
“Blockchain Sports has [already] invested approximately $10 million to establish three football academies in Rio De Janeiro, Sobral, and Acopiara,” he said.
Saksonov also said over a hundred talented teenagers from among tens of thousands across Brazil were scouted during the ‘Tempo de Futebol’ football competition for young players organized by Blockchain sports academies.
Atleta’s official roadmap also reveals that all the core features of the network will be launched in the mainnet by the end of Q3 2024.
In addition, the mainnet will be imbued with an AI/ML system for continuous network improvement and seamless functioning.
Company executives said sports organizations will need Atleta’s utility token $ATLA to access the platform’s functionalities and that Atleta users will be able to exchange the token for major cryptocurrencies on the network’s DEX.
Additionally, Atleta’s Bridge will allow users to transfer their tokens from Atleta to other EVM-compatible networks and vice versa. The $ATLA token TGE is scheduled for September 2024.
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