As major sports brands increase their presence within the virtual world, some observers believe that live sports could help push internet users into the metaverse.
After the salad days of 2021 and 2022, the hype surrounding the idea of the Metaverse is back on earth. It’s been years since some individuals spent millions of dollars on non-fungible token avatars such as Bored Apes, but the number of ways these avatars can actually be used remains relatively small. , the Metaverse remains primarily the domain of teenagers, gamers, and NFT enthusiasts. .
But last week, Bored Ape owners were able to use their avatars to attend and watch Major League Baseball games in what could become the new Metaverse ballpark for brand marketers. At the Sept. 25 game between the Tampa Bay Rays and Detroit Tigers, the sports league officially allowed NFT avatar owners to sit in the virtual stadium and even stand in the outfield, with Hawkeye cameras watching the ball inside the arena. I filmed the movement. and transform the player into a real-time virtual display.
Major League Baseball sees digital ballparks as an opportunity for both baseball fans and potential advertisers. Last year, MLB sponsors like Corona and Mastercard displayed their brands inside virtual stadiums. After last week’s game, the creators of the virtual stadium believe that the introduction of external avatars could create more advertising opportunities for interested brands.
“We’ve seen a lot of false starts when brands engage with developers, failing to reach their fans because the experience wasn’t rich enough to justify the attention and energy they put into it. ?” said Herman Narula, CEO of Improbable Worlds Limited, a technology company that partnered with MLB to build and operate the virtual stadium. “MLB is using this as a virtual ballpark, so [Bored Apes owner] Yuga Labs, on the other hand, can directly negotiate and engage with participating brands. ”
For now, MLB’s foray into the metaverse is still an experiment and not a significant source of revenue. According to figures shared by Improbable, about 10,000 unique users attended at least one event on the platform last month, with 1,570 of them staying for at least 30 minutes. MLB views these numbers as encouraging, but acknowledges that the opportunity still appears small given the size of viewers on other platforms.
“This isn’t the most high-profile event of ours, but when we get a big crowd here, you see where we can go,” said Kenny Gersh, MLB executive vice president of media and business development. said. “There are sponsorship opportunities where you can brand just like you would at a physical ballpark. You can start charging for tickets just like you would at a real game, you can start charging for tickets just like you would at a real game, you can start charging for tickets just as you would at a real game, It could be a department.”
Live sports is one of the most popular forms of entertainment, so it’s no wonder that thousands of users were interested in watching live baseball games within Improbable’s virtual platform. But while other prominent sports brands have invested in virtual presences over the past year, MLB is the only one to actually broadcast real-time games virtually, in part due to legal and technical challenges.
For example, the NFL recently partnered with “Ultimate Football,” the most popular football experience on Roblox, but while the league has not yet hosted live virtual games, it is aware of the potential and plans to do so in the future. I’m actually interested in exploring that. .
“This is definitely an area we’re interested in, but there are some technical challenges to doing it specifically within Roblox. Certainly in terms of getting volumetric capture like Hawkeye. , we have platforms that allow us to do more real-time things, so we can try to build something bespoke,” said Ed Cann, vice president of NFL video games. “When we think about our gaming experience, especially Roblox, there are all kinds of KPIs that we have to consider as digital marketers and as brands. But I have kids, so as a parent, I want to know what my kids are doing. I’m looking at you.”
Whether or not they implement real-time capture in the near future, major sports brands are focused on increasing the level of activity and engagement within their Metaverse platforms, from MLB’s live virtual matches to the U.S. Open Tennis Metaverse. It is clear that there are.
But so far, most of these efforts are aimed at gamers and children, rather than the adults who make up the majority of sports viewers. Efforts such as MLB’s virtual games represent a more adult version of the sports event Metaverse effort.
“Our goal from a digital perspective is to bring the tournament to fans around the world, because not everyone can be here for the next two weeks,” said U.S. Tennis Association Senior Director of Digital Strategy. said Brian Ryerson. “What we consider a gaming platform is a great way for the right partner to expand to new audiences.”