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UFC to Launch NFT Collection. Here's Why This Is Good News for Fighters

Thu, 08/05/2021 - 14:42
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Alex Dovbnya
The world's biggest martial arts organization is finally getting into the NFT game
UFC to Launch NFT Collection. Here's Why This Is Good News for Fighters
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Las Vegas-based martial arts organization Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) has joined forces with collectibles company Panini America to drop its first non-fungible tokens, according to an Aug. 5 report by Sportico.

Fighters featured on NFTs will be able to receive a 50 percent chunk of the revenue derived from sales, which is significantly more than they typically get from merchandise.

UFC COO Lawrence Epstein says that such a split is reasonable:

A 50-50 split makes sense. It's fair, and it reflects what both sides are delivering to the product.

The drop will commemorate some of the historic moments that have taken place in the UFC's octagon, as well as some of the biggest stars who have graced it.

The NFT licensing deal builds on an existing partnership between UFC and Panini. In January, the two companies formed a tie-up in order to launch collectible trading cards.

In late March, UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou sold his NFT drop for a whopping $580,000 in partnership with BossLogic.

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Following the success of Dapper Labs' NBA Top Shot, NFTs have permeated the American sports industry. As reported by U.Today, Candy Digital, a company co-founded by Galaxy Digital CEO Mike Novogratz, joined forces with Major League Baseball in order to launch NFT collectibles.

UFC had already inked several crypto partnerships prior to joining the NFT craze. All the way back in December 2018, it announced a sponsorship deal with the Litecoin Foundation.

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About the author

Alex Dovbnya (aka AlexMorris) is a cryptocurrency expert, trader and journalist with extensive experience of covering everything related to the burgeoning industry — from price analysis to Blockchain disruption. Alex authored more than 1,000 stories for U.Today, CryptoComes and other fintech media outlets. He’s particularly interested in regulatory trends around the globe that are shaping the future of digital assets, can be contacted at alex.dovbnya@u.today.