Great news for football fans who love crypto, The Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) has deployed a new ticketing system that uses blockchain technology to prevent ticket touting and forgeries. The new system was used for the UEFA Super Cup match in Tallinn, which saw Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid battle it out for ultimate bragging rights. Earlier in May, 50% of the UEFA Europa League final tickets were sold using the blockchain app. This news could possibly worry Tottenham Hotspur fans, as delays to their stadium could mean blockchain tickets might not be accepted if the venue’s system has to be changed last minute. Hopefully, UEFA has planned for these sorts of mishaps in its blockchain code.
Crypto Coming to Football
The blockchain and crypto world is no stranger to football. Earlier in the year, Turkish side –
Harunustaspor – became the first football team to complete a player signing using cryptos. Given the fact that banks take anywhere between 1% and 5% percent on a transaction, when it comes to big international businesses such as football clubs, there is a lot of money being wasted. By shifting those multi-million-pound transactions towards cryptocurrency, they can save themselves a small fortune. However, player signings aren’t the only use for cryptos in the football world. Gibraltar United became the first football team to partially pay its players in cryptos this season. It will be trialed for the 2018/19 season and if the players prefer it, it will be continued for the foreseeable future.
Blockchain is the Future
Blockchain technology holds an untold amount of potential, and companies are just discovering how it can be implemented in their business operations. This new wave of innovation is providing communities with a powerful and secure way to interact with the world. Blockchain helps to speed up processes that were slow and it makes them more secure in the process. American Express is working on blockchain technology that will change the way its users travel.
Other Sports are Joining the Blockchain Movement
The Major League Baseball (MLB) franchise has been struggling with declining revenues from merchandise sales, with it turning to blockchain for a solution. MLB is now selling unique collectibles on a blockchain to help boost team’s revenues – similarly to CryptoKitties. During the Winter Olympics, Team USA used Bitcoin to help raise funds for the Luge foundation. Other sporting bodies are reportedly looking into using cryptocurrencies and blockchain, so it is only a matter of time before it is implemented globally.
Sporting fans could be buying their Europa League and Champions League tickets this season using blockchain technology, keeping their purchases safe and more secure than ever before. This could be the first step to removing ticket touts and forgers from the beautiful game and other sports around the globe. Whoever you are supporting in this years’ competitions, we can all get behind blockchain that’s for sure!
