According to Bitcoin Magazine, Bitcoin has experienced tremendous growth in the past few months: since January 2021, its price has risen sharply and is expected to continue to rise. This growth highlights the great potential of Bitcoin as an investment asset. For this reason, professional athletes and major sports clubs are using Bitcoin. For example, the offensive tackle of the Carolina Panthers, Russell Okung, recently became the first NFL player to pay a salary in Bitcoin. In this article, we will explore the future of Bitcoin in sports.
Why professional athletes are investing in Bitcoin
1. In order to better control your wealth
Bitcoin allows athletes to have more control over their own money by cutting intermediaries. Many athletes have endorsements and company sponsorship agreements. The agents who manage these transactions end up spending a lot of money.
By using Bitcoin, athletes can make transactions without going through the kind of intermediary services provided by agents. These endorsements involve a lot of money. Using Bitcoin to pay can help avoid high taxes, because the capital gain rate is sometimes lower than the ordinary income tax, depending on the jurisdiction in which it is located.
2. Bitcoin provides privacy and security
The government and sponsoring companies track the consumption habits of athletes. In addition, their high profile and reputation will make athletes the target of scammers. If athletes decide to take necessary privacy protection measures, Bitcoin can keep their identities secret and give them a sense of security.
3. Investment
Bitcoin is one of the fastest growing industries in financial technology. By investing in the industry, athletes are expected to reap huge profits. Some of the top athletes who have invested heavily in cryptocurrencies include Lionel Messi, Nikita Kucherov, Floyd Mayweather and Ma Matt Barkley.
NFL and NBA's investment in Bitcoin
The Sacramento Kings became the first NBA team to accept Bitcoin payments in 2014. Its purpose is to enhance the customer experience when purchasing season tickets and merchandise. According to "Forbes" reports, in April 2020, the Kings announced that team players will be eligible to receive wages in the form of Bitcoin.
In 2019, the Dallas Mavericks began to accept Bitcoin as a payment method for goods and tickets. Similarly, the Miami Dolphins began accepting Bitcoin payments in the 2019/2020 NFL season.
4. Athletes participate in Bitcoin
Russell Okung is the vice president of the NFL Players Association and a former Los Angeles Chargers left forward. However, when he became the first NFL athlete to pay a salary in Bitcoin, his name made the headlines. It all started when he visited his ancestral home in Nigeria and tried to transfer money from his American account but failed.
This incident prompted Okung to switch to Bitcoin. In fact, he tweeted as early as May 2019 saying "Pay me with Bitcoin". Although the Denguang team rejected his request, Trezor gave Okung a free wallet. Recently, he received another good news: The Carolina Panthers will use Bitcoin to pay Okung half of his $13 million salary. Despite this, the Jaguars do not directly pay players in Bitcoin. Instead, they will send the funds to Strike, a platform that converts payments into bitcoin, which will pay Okung in bitcoin.
According to previous reports from BitTweet, Strike also plans to attract professional basketball and baseball players, and New York Yankees baseball players and Brooklyn Nets basketball players also joined the program. There is no doubt that Okun has already started this process.
Auckland Sports team sells bitcoin tickets
A key development in the adoption of Bitcoin in sports is the acceptance of Bitcoin as a payment method for tickets. The COVID-19 pandemic hindered the use of banknotes, but this trend existed before the virus emerged. For convenience and health considerations, Bitcoin is becoming more and more widely accepted.
Accepting Bitcoin is a meaningful way for the team to make more dollars while waiting for the normal recovery of sports activities. Essentially, the transition to Bitcoin will become a feature of the new normal. The Oakland Athletics are pioneers in the use of Bitcoin for full-service payments in professional baseball games.
Bitcoin's application in football transfers
One of the most interesting behaviors in football is buying and selling players. In every transfer window, football teams spend a lot of money. The young people who are coming are worth as much as 100 million euros.
The use of Bitcoin for transfers is a new milestone in the sports industry. In 2018, Harunustaspor of Turkey signed Omer Faruk Kirogul for 0.0524 Bitcoin. International Madrid also completed a unique contract, using Bitcoin to buy David Ballard from Real Madrid B.
Club and team sponsorship
If you are an avid sports enthusiast, you may have seen the names of major Bitcoin exchanges on sports apparel. The name of the Bitcoin exchange is now common in the competition. The transaction between the FTX cryptocurrency exchange and the NBA regarding the naming rights of the Miami Heat stadium is nearing completion. The transaction price is 135 million U.S. dollars for a period of 19 years.
In 2014, BitPay sponsored the St. Petersburg Bowl to promote Bitcoin. Similarly, the UK-based trading platform eToro is sponsoring several Premier League football clubs, including Crystal Palace, Tottenham Hotspur, Leicester City, Southampton, Brighton and Hove Albion. The Premier League is one of the largest football leagues in the world and is very popular.
Generally speaking, Bitcoin can be used to pay for player transfers, reduce ticket reselling, and verify merchandise. Another example is that in 2018, Gibraltar United Football Club paid players with Bitcoin. These developments highlight the huge potential of Bitcoin in the sports field.
Bitcoin's future in sports
As Bitcoin becomes more and more popular, its adoption rate in sports will continue to rise. Next year, we may see more clubs cooperating with Bitcoin-related companies. In addition, more and more clubs will switch to using Bitcoin as a payment method for player salaries and transfers. Like other industries, Bitcoin has a bright future in sports.
