DraftKings Adds March Madness Primetime NFT Series

DraftKings continues to shift its focus on recreational sports fans and bettors – in fact, that focus was never anywhere else – and the company is pushing ahead with the Primetime NFT Series. Building on its experience in the non-fungible token market through its dedicated DraftKings Marketplace, the Primetime Series offer digital memorabilia that celebrates particular sports events from across numerous discipline and all over the world.

March Madness Begins with NFT Collectibles

The collection is released to coincide with the launch of the NCAA Division 1 Men’s Basketball tournament or March Madness as the event is known among sports fans. To build the connection between the NFT collection and the event itself, DraftKings plans on introducing “key” NFTs throughout the series called 2022 College Hoops Collection.

Those would arguably focus on immortalizing moments from the event’s history that would then be available to own by sports fans, as guaranteed by the DraftKings Marketplace platform. Commenting on these developments, DraftKings North America president and co-founder Matt Kalish said:

“DraftKings is already deeply embedded within the biggest moments in sports, and the new Primetime NFT Series will further drive engagement while also providing rewards that bridge to our gaming offerings for the first time.”

DraftKings NA president and co-founder Matt Kalish

Kalish showed confidence that there are hardly any sports events that are as riveting as March Madness because of the tournament’s many wild cards, the immense potential to draft NBA recruits, and the overall competitiveness of the contest. The executive noted that DraftKings had chosen this moment to release the collectibles precisely for the above reasons.

There will be eight digital collectibles introduced to mark the occasion, but a ninth one is expected via an airdrop to the collections who have already have all the previous pieces. Once a collector unlocks the ninth piece, this will automatically grant them access to the Primetime NFT series, which DraftKings argues will be released at some point this year.

More Digital Collectibles and Perks to Follow

There will be other benefits for consumers as well. For example, on top of the NFT collectibles, players will also receive DK Dollars which are there to create opportunities for consumers in new ways. These DK Dollars are referred to as utility tokens and they can be converted into gameplay money to bet on DraftKings’ platforms.

In a way, you can think of the DK Dollars as Comp Points which can be exchanged for more money, but with the twist, they are the direct byproduct of NFT technology. This is just a first for DraftKings which will be focusing to ramp up the release of such NFT technologies through its DraftKings Marketplace, which was established with the help of a Tom Brady-owned company.

The company dropped its first NFT collection back in August 2021 and the solution has since integrated with Polygon, a solution that focuses on solving blockchain problems with scalability and gas or transaction fees. All NFTs will have an exclusive one-of-a-kind edition which will be auctioned off to the highest bidder, creating yet more competition for those participating.