- “Hundreds of sports brands will eventually become validator nodes,” Chiliz CEO and Founder Alexandre Dreyfus says during a panel at Korea Blockchain Week as he set out his vision for a fully decentralized sports industry alongside PSG Head of Web3, Pär Helgosson
Earlier this week, Chiliz took center stage at Korean Blockchain Week as its CEO and Founder Alexandre Dreyfus joined French football giant PSG’s Head of Web3 Pär Helgosson to discuss how the Sports Blockchain and club are reshaping sports “block-by-block” to foster a fully decentralized sports industry.
In February, PSG became the first ever football club to become a node validator on a blockchain, laying the foundations for the club to build a self-sustainable Fan Token digital economy, engage with its global fanbase, and “inspire other clubs” to follow suit.
It’s this trend that Dreyfus believes is just the beginning in mass adoption of sports validators stating that, “all validator nodes will eventually be controlled by sports properties.”
“My dream as a founder is that in however many years, Chiliz will have hundreds of sports businesses running validators so that the blockchain will be fully decentralized towards the sports industry.”
Alex’s ambitions form part of Chiliz’s wider strategy to open up the Chiliz Chain infrastructure and create a completely decentralized ecosystem so that “any Fan Token holder or club running as a validator node can get economic exposure and potential value out of what is being created.”
PSG and Chiliz have pioneered the web3 x sports space since 2018 when the club became Socios.com’s first-ever Fan Token partner, acting as a blueprint for sports brands to initiate their own web3 strategies. Today, more than 70 sports brands across the global sports industry use Fan Tokens and the Socios.com platform to engage and reward their global fanbases.
Having now worked with each other for over half a decade, both Alex and Pär agree that innovation combined with education plays a crucial role in onboarding the sports industry to web3.
“Everything is about learning” says Alex, “It’s about learning about the technology, and it’s about how to work with the clubs.”
For Pär, it’s also about the importance of platforms like Chiliz to help sports brands innovate and develop their own digital strategies, saying: “We’re a football club at the core. One part of the innovation is on the inside, one part is on the outside. It’s up to innovation partners (such as Chiliz) on the outside so we can innovate together and explore through an ecosystem of integrated products and services.”
Further steps made in Korea
The Korea Blockchain Week panel hosted by Korean TV personality, Shin A-young, also presented the opportunity for Alex to share further updates on the platform’s South Korean expansion.
Chiliz recently announced a collaboration with the country’s largest payment provider, Naver Pay, on its new web3 wallet which will provide millions of users with a secure and user-friendly platform to manage their digital assets.
The announcement is currently being celebrated via an NFT giveaway event for new users giving them the chance to win travel packages to European football matches featuring top clubs like PSG and FC Barcelona.
Through utilizing Naver Pay’s extensive network of merchants, rewards and benefits will only increase for users into the future, says Alex: “We hope that one day we can launch a loyalty scheme where Fan Token holders can utilize their Naver Pay wallet in vendors such as Nike to receive discounts on their club’s merchandise.”
