How could the metaverse, with its combo of Augmented Reality (AR), Virtual Reality (VR) and Blockchain technologies for NFTs (Non-Fungible Tokens), have an impact on the sports and entertainment industry?
There are a variety of responses to this, from those who argue it’s an opportunity and those who see no progress, staying true to the mission of satisfying fans.
Metaverse and sports: how high tech will affect the industry
The metaverse has already crept into several sectors such as social with Zuckerberg’s Meta, but also among blockchain projects such as Decentraland and The Sandbox that started the virtual real estate market with multi-million dollar sales.
But how might the metaverse affect the sports and entertainment industry? Matthew Ball, a managing partner at Epyllion Co. who co-founded the Roundhill Ball Metaverse ETF answered in an interview:
“One of its biggest impacts on sports, will be on how we watch games. Rather than being stranded on a couch, fans will have the opportunity to view a game more like they are in the stands. In fact, everyone could one day have the best seats in the house, with their fantasy score or live bets shown on the jumbotron. At-home fans might even be able to impact the game the way a hollering home crowd can”.
Not only that, there could also be new opportunities related to selling more tickets to exclusive events with numbers beyond the arena’s capacity.
Furthermore, the metaverse could give fans who are away from the team’s hometown the opportunity to experience the action, interact with teammates, and enjoy the atmosphere of being in the arena.
Metaverse and sports across borders and beyond
In addition to expanding beyond the boundaries of physical reality, the metaverse could also create new opportunities in sports and entertainment through the interactions that can be made.
Meeting famous athletes, competing with them in a game or two and, again, the possibility of decorating spaces with your own Non-Fungible Tokens or NFT Art.
In this regard, even Simon Powell, analyst at Jefferies expressed himself on the metaverse in The Digitization of Everything, as follows:
“A single metaverse could be more than a decade away, but as it evolves it has the potential to disrupt almost everything in human life that has not yet already been disrupted.
The pandemic accelerated the adoption of various technologies. Many people were forced to spend even more of their lives online from socializing to working, from education to entertainment. This shift to an online world will continue”.
Source: https://en.cryptonomist.ch/2022/02/05/metaverse-impact-sport-entertainment/