It’s the moment millions of football fans have been waiting for. Panini recently announced their first NFL NFTs will be available starting on December 1.
NFTs have been entering the sports collectible landscape for a number of years now, with NBA Top Shot being one of the most popular methods among digital sports memorabilia collectors. While other sports leagues such as basketball, baseball, and wrestling have been involved for months now, the NFL was a bit more calculated before officially entering the playing field.
Nevertheless, the wait is finally coming to an end. Soon NFL fans will be able to join in on the fun, collecting their most memorable moments from their favorite players in a tradeable, collectible digital format that holds value, just like a traditional football card from Panini or another company would.
Here’s Joe Ruggiero, SVP of Consumer Products at the NFL’s thoughts on the NFT matter.
“Trading cards have seen a resurgence in popularity making this the perfect time to release our first NFT Trading Card Packs with Panini America,” said Joe Ruggiero, SVP of Consumer Products at the NFL. “The NFL looks forward to partnering with Panini to offer NFL NFT trading cards, creating another touchpoint for engagement for fans.”
While some are admittedly hesitant to get in on this newfangled approach to becoming a sports card collector, others are loving it. In my opinion, it’s great for football as it only creates more excitement from passionate sports fans all over the world. Whatever helps grow the game and there’s no denying, NFTs are helping provide a creative spark that we have yet to see.
I can’t wait to see how Panini approaches their partnership with the NFL, but I have very high hopes. Panini’s NFL NFT trading card packs will be available on their private blockchain. From there, fans can shop for individual moments or full packs.