Sumgait club has taken an interesting and innovative step towards the development and digitalization of basketball in the country.
The representative of the City of Youth is trying to take advantage of technology and establish more interactive communication with fans by implementing an NFT (digital collection) project for the first time. The NFT collection called Basketball Legends of Sumgait was developed on the Ethereum blockchain with the ERC-1155 standard and was put up for sale on one of the world's most popular NFT platforms, opensea.io, at a price of 0.35 ethereum (approximately $1,175).
The director of Sumgait Elnur Guliyev gave more detailed information about the project in an interview with offsideplus.az.
- How did the idea of NFT come about? Where did this initiative come from?
- In recent years, digitalization in the field of sports has been developing rapidly in the world, and I thought that we should also act in accordance with these trends. Especially We wanted to create a closer, interactive and modern connection with the fans. The initiative to create NFT arose from our desire to take advantage of the opportunities of technology and share about the Sumgait club in a different way.
- Can your initiative as the first basketball club in Azerbaijan be an example for others?
- Our main goal is to make basketball popular in our country, popularize and develop it. One of our goals in creating NFT is to pave the way for innovative approaches in the sports sector and encourage other sports clubs to enter this field. NFT is not only a technological innovation, but also a new stage in marketing and communication with fans. We hope that this step will become an example for other clubs and contribute to the digital development of sports in the country.
- How much interest has there been in NFTs? And what do you plan to do to increase interest in this project?
- At the first stage, interest in our NFTs came mainly from basketball fans and students and young people who are interested in technology. However, we plan to organize special campaigns, social media projects and live meetings with fans next season to bring this to a wider audience. At the same time, we aim to further increase this interest by offering certain exclusive privileges to NFT owners. In particular, we plan to hold educational events on digital technologies in educational institutions located in Sumgayit.
- How can NFTs contribute to the club's financial sustainability in the future?
- At the initial stage, it is still too early to consider NFTs as a source of income. However, experience shows that there are prospects for additional income from the sale of NFT collections. Usually, the income from NFT sales is directed to the club's youth programs, academy and marketing activities. This can also be useful as an alternative source of income.
- If it proves to be worthwhile, do you plan to provide NFT owners with some exclusive privileges?
- Yes, we have plans in this direction. We are thinking of offering NFT owners benefits such as free access to games, invitations to club events, discounts on special fan products, or digital content designed exclusively for NFT owners in the future. This will both increase the fan's loyalty to the Sumgait club and further strengthen the real value of NFTs.
- What other digital innovations do you have plans for besides this project?
- NFT is a start for us. In the future, we plan to work on projects such as interactive mobile applications, fan experience with virtual reality (VR), and digital fan zones. Our goal is to make the Sumgayit basketball club a club that is known not only for its sporting successes, but also for its technological innovations.
- Do you have an idea to conduct educational activities regarding NFTs?
- Yes, we are thinking of introducing this field through seminars in schools and universities, and simple language videos on social networks. NFT is not just technology, but a new form of creativity and property rights.
- How do you assess the future of NFT and other new technologies in Azerbaijan?
- Technologies such as NFT, Web3, Blockchain are still in their infancy. The formation of legal frameworks in the near future will help this sector spread even more widely. We also want to be at the forefront of this process. We highly appreciate the trust and support shown to us by the Azerbaijan Basketball Federation in this direction.
Idman.biz
