Sorare: Bringing Fantasy Sports into the Metaverse with NFTs and Blockchain Technology

Published 20 Jun 2022
Reference 6750
Region Europe
Length 20 page(s)
Summary

As nonfungible tokens (NFTs) entered the arena in 2021, Sorare emerged as one of the leaders in the space, offering blockchain-based football (soccer) player cards for participants to trade and use in fantasy sports games. This case explores Sorare’s growth from a small start-up in Paris that struggled to secure funding, to a major player in the NFT space backed by SoftBank with a $680m funding round. It discusses the concept of NFTs and how Sorare uses the new technology in the sports industry, the challenges of launching an NFT-based business, the concept of the metaverse and it’s connection to NFTs. Students are invited to debate the next steps in Sorare’s strategy.

Teaching objectives

The purpose of the case is to understand how to build a business around NFTs and the metaverse, as well as potential use-cases of NFTs in a business-to-business setting. The specific focus is the sports industry and how Sorare partnered with sports leagues to develop a novel blockchain-based product. Students follow the entrepreneurial journey from founding a company in the blockchain space to planning for the future taking into account the volatility and growth potential associated with cryptocurrency markets.

Keywords
  • Nonfungible Tokens
  • NFTs
  • Blockchain
  • Sports
  • Fantasy Sports
  • Ethereum
  • Intellectual Property
  • Startups
  • Entrepreneurship
  • Digital Strategy
  • Partnerships
  • New technologies
  • Football Cards
  • Digital@INSEAD
  • Q22022