DraftKings Inc. has revealed plans to launch DraftKings Marketplace, a digital collectibles ecosystem designed for mainstream accessibility that offers curated drops of non-fungible tokens (NFTs) and supports secondary-market transactions.
Once launched, millions of customers will have the ability to seamlessly buy, sell and trade digital collectibles across sports, entertainment and culture using their existing DraftKings account. Additionally, as part of a new strategic relationship, DraftKings Marketplace also will be the exclusive distributor of sports-related NFT content from NFT platform Autograph, which leverages official licensing of prominent athletes and celebrities to provide a wide array of digital collectibles.
“The NFT boom has reinvented the collectibles industry and driven excitement to early-adopting audiences worldwide—including the DraftKings community,” said Matt Kalish, DraftKings co-founder and president.
“DraftKings Marketplace will sit at the center of this technological and cultural phenomenon, providing our immense existing customer base with an easily accessible experience that rivals all legacy marketplaces. This initial vision in collaboration with Autograph, and its coveted collection of official digital collectibles, is a vital first step as we enter the emergent NFT market. We aim to usher in this new era by introducing millions of collectors to this evolving space while providing beloved content through an intuitive interface built to win over the long term.”
The initial drops on DraftKings Marketplace for USD purchase will be the “Pre-Season Access” collection, which will showcase NFTs of legendary athletes from Autograph’s roster of talent and partners while also giving fans a chance to obtain preferred access to future releases. DraftKings Marketplace will also serve as a secondary-sale platform where users can buy, sell and trade digital collectibles bought within the marketplace community.
“As the world becomes more comfortable with digital ownership and collection, we see an incredible opportunity to bring users high-quality and personalized content from their favorite athletes, artists and franchises,” said Dillon Rosenblatt, founder and CEO of Autograph. “NFTs are the perfect medium to connect users to both the things they love and those who share those interests, and we want to leverage today’s incredible partnerships to provide continued value to our community.”
Autograph’s advisory board will help design custom NFTs exclusively for Autograph that will begin rolling out later this summer via DraftKings Marketplace drops. While DraftKings Marketplace will be the exclusive purveyor of sports NFTs from Autograph, the collaboration may eventually branch into other verticals like entertainment, lifestyle and culture.
Autograph recently teamed up with Lionsgate to derive NFT content from iconic films and television series with a portfolio that ranges across The Hunger Games, Rambo IV & V, Dirty Dancing, Blair Witch, Mad Men, John Wick, The Divergent Series, The Expendables, The Twilight Saga and other fan favorites.
Further details about DraftKings Marketplace will be announced next month.
