Blockchain-based sports platform Zetly has announced a new partnership with PowChess, Haste Arcade and Transmira to build a new platform aimed at sports clubs and federations to boost fan engagement and help raise funds.

Zetly is an all-in-one platform that aims to create a unique platform where clubs can release their utility tokens and NFTs while promoting fan engagement. The second part of the platform allows users to engage 24/7, be closer to their favourite teams, and show their support. 

Glijer said the new partnership aims to build a new ‘sports metaverse’ using the respective talents of Zetly and its new partners. The initial pilot programme will target several major sports teams and brands to offer them an all-encompassing package, including:

• A sports metaverse powered by Transmira;
• Pay-to-earn games powered by Haste Arcade;
• Infrastructure and further BSV blockchain game development powered by PowChess.

Pilot programme

Glijer said the pilot programme will be announced in the coming weeks and will include a full sports metaverse. This will include scanning the arena, building fan engagement opportunities, introducing new pay-to-earn games and offering NFT digital collections.

He said the goal is to have customers receive an NFT when they buy a shirt, scarf or other pieces of memorabilia from their favourite sports team. At the same time, this NFT can then be used in the metaverse and interacted with online. Glijer added that this pilot programme will be free with the funds instead raised through the sale of the tokens and various NFTs on sale.

‘This programme is unique because it contains almost everything that is going to be needed for a sports club on the Web3 ecosystem and the fun thing is that it costs nothing. We aim to create a kind of snowball effect from these sports brands, together with our partners, and with the BSV blockchain support. This is a win-win for us.’

The power of BSV blockchain

Glijer said this entire project will be powered by the BSV blockchain, with the platform fundamental to the pilot programme due to the support that it offers developers and start-ups.

‘BSV blockchain is a huge opportunity for us because our NFT use-case is widespread. Because of the size of the block (4GB), to release and mine the ‘NFT moments’ – which will contain a 100MB high-quality video file – would cost a lot if minted on other blockchains. The transaction speeds are also awesome.’

‘I just recognised that BSV blockchain is the perfect solution for us. BSV also doesn’t have sports applications, so our project could do well because it has strong fundamentals.’

Glijer said sporting teams across Europe have a huge fanbase, which provides the possibility of a large secondary market that engages online and wants to buy, sell and trade tokens. This also opens up funding opportunities for these clubs, which can tap into this secondary market to potentially raise more capital.

‘Our Zetly model is going to provide the marketplace for the exchange of fan tokens and will be the place that fans can take part in exclusive content.’ He added that the goal is to have the NFT token usable within the new play-to-earn games, opening up another avenue for engagement, with this possible through the BSV blockchain.

‘We are going to share the profit from each transaction of the token (with the club). The platform works on micro-fee payments of between 1-3%, but BSV allows this to be cut very much’.

Other opportunities could see individual athletes mint social media and selfie posts on the blockchain to create NFTs, which could potentially be used in different ways to raise capital – including for charity. Glijer said the platform also allows for more general fundraising and allows clubs and athletes to set specific goals, such as fundraising for a new bus or going on a winter tour.

A multi-year change

Glijer said that the shift towards blockchain and the new platform will not be instantaneous and will require both a strong strategy and a willingness to learn from both clubs and fans. He added that this was not a once-off project but rather a broader sea change that will occur over the coming years.

He added that the most important thing at this stage is that clubs create a large secondary marketplace through their fanbase who want to engage and don’t feel like they are being monetised and being taken advantage of.

‘Fan engagement is not about the money. Fan engagement is about support and giving the most happiness by being close to the team. Give to them as much as you can and show them love. Once they are happy to use these digital assets, they will start exchanging cars, buying tokens and are happy to take part in the sports metaverse’.

Glijer said that the pilot programme should start within the next couple of months, with the group aiming to bring on several sports franchises before launch. ‘I think we are ready for it. We are all fighters, we are all excited about the idea, we are happy that the Bitcoin Association for BSV is supporting us.’