**Disclosure:** The opinions and perspectives expressed here are solely those of the author and do not reflect the views or opinions of crypto.news’ editorial team.
Boxing, while the fourth most popular sport in the United States, remains one of the most fragmented and inefficient sectors in the sports industry. However, recent advancements driven by social media, extensive marketing efforts, and a surge of influencers stepping into the ring have spurred its growth. Today, the sport is valued at over $1 billion in the US alone, with a global fan base of approximately 300 million.
Despite this success, significant challenges persist, especially for young and underrepresented amateur boxers who remain excluded from these benefits. Fortunately, blockchain technology holds the promise of revolutionizing the boxing world.
**Fragmented Ecosystems and Mismanagement**
In any sport, talent should ideally correlate with career advancement, but this is not always the case in boxing. The path to becoming a professional boxer involves interacting with a wide array of individuals such as sparring partners, agents, promoters, trainers, nutritionists, and masseurs, all of whom use different platforms for communication and collaboration. This fragmented system complicates the process for emerging boxers to find the right support, negotiate fair deals, and build successful relationships.
With 17 weight classes and four distinct governing bodies for men’s boxing alone, the industry is mired in siloed ecosystems and opaque decision-making processes. This often results in disputes over rankings, fight negotiations, and revenue distribution.
Access to substantial funding is crucial for career development, yet financial obstacles often prevent aspiring boxers from seizing opportunities. While elite professionals like Floyd Mayweather can earn millions—$223 million from his 2015 fight against Manny Pacquiao, for example—the average professional boxer in 2018 made only $35,584. The high costs associated with securing top-tier services, traveling for networking, and establishing a brand make the road to success financially prohibitive for most.
**Blockchain’s Potential in Sports**
The sports industry at large faces these issues, but blockchain technology offers solutions that many sports organizations and athletes are beginning to explore. Platforms like Chiliz are using blockchain to create fan tokens, such as Tottenham Hotspur’s ‘Spurs Fan Token,’ to enhance fan engagement and monetization. Blockchain also streamlines processes, as seen with Sports Illustrated’s NFT-based ticketing system, which combats ticket fraud and rewards fans. Strategic partnerships have emerged, such as Lionel Messi’s collaboration with Bitget, the Crypto.com Arena in LA, and Manchester City’s association with OKX.
In boxing, world heavyweight champion Oleksandr Usyk has sold exclusive NFTs, with proceeds going to support a charity in Ukraine. Yet the transformative potential of blockchain in boxing extends far beyond NFTs.
**A Decentralized Boxing Community**
Decentralization is the key to transforming the boxing industry. Blockchain technology offers a unified, decentralized network that integrates the fragmented elements of the sport, eliminating centralized intermediaries and fostering transparency in transactions and interactions among stakeholders.
The rise of a creative economy and the tokenization of real-world assets (RWA) mean that boxers, promoters, coaches, sponsors, and other industry participants can now tokenize their skills and services on the blockchain. This approach provides them with greater control over their data and career decisions, enhances transparency, reduces costs, and simplifies processes, which is especially beneficial for emerging, marginalized boxers.
Blockchain’s global accessibility via the internet also facilitates the creation of a unified boxing community, where boxers and fans from around the world can connect, enabling new networking opportunities and helping aspiring talents find sparring partners and other resources.
**Building Trust Through Transparency and Immutability**
Blockchain’s inherent transparency and immutability are crucial for establishing trust within the industry. By storing all data, such as athlete contracts and financial transactions, permanently on the blockchain, it supports transparency and helps stakeholders make informed decisions. For example, if an advertiser pays a boxer through their agent on the blockchain, the boxer can see the exact amount they should receive, preventing unfair cuts by the agent. Blockchain can also expose corruption, such as the suspected match-fixing at the Rio 2016 Olympics.
With sensitive boxer data and high-value transactions involved, blockchain’s robust security measures ensure data privacy and integrity. Advanced cryptographic techniques protect transactions and communications, making it difficult for fraudsters to intercept or alter information, thus fostering confidence among boxing professionals, especially those new to blockchain technology.
**Empowering Cross-Border Transactions**
Decentralization also helps reduce transaction costs and eliminates intermediaries within the boxing industry. Cryptocurrencies enable smooth, cross-border transactions for services like coaching, endorsements, and fan engagement. For instance, American boxer Mike Tyson could pay his Brazilian promoter, Rafael Cordeiro, without the complications of currency exchange fees.
Fan tokens and NFTs offer new ways for boxers to monetize their brand and interact directly with fans, bypassing traditional intermediaries and creating new revenue streams. Fans are motivated to buy these tokens for exclusive content and participation in decision-making processes.
**Creating a Unified Boxing Community**
The ultimate solution lies in developing a comprehensive, blockchain-based SocialFi platform that consolidates the needs of the boxing industry under one roof. In November 2023, the launch of the world’s first blockchain-based boxing platform, Ready to Fight, marked a significant step in this direction. This platform leverages decentralized web3 technology to connect boxers, fans, and industry professionals, offering a space for showcasing talent, networking, and monetizing content. Through its native RTF token, Ready to Fight aims to address the industry’s challenges and pave the way for a clearer, fairer, and more accessible boxing world.
While there is still much work to be done to encourage the transition from web2 to web3 technologies, the adoption of blockchain innovation in boxing promises to reshape the industry for the better.
**Read More:**
*Web3 is the Game Changer for Athlete Monetization Beyond the Field | Opinion*
**Sergey Lapin**
Sergey Lapin is the co-founder and CEO of *Ready To Fight*, the first blockchain-based online boxing platform launched in November 2023. Ready to Fight is a SocialFi platform designed to help both amateur and professional athletes connect with promoters, coaches, sponsors, and other key figures in the boxing community. Through the RTF token, the platform provides a transparent, open, and secure environment for athletes to manage their careers and interact with fans. Sergey leverages his deep understanding of the fragmented boxing industry and blockchain technology to lead the platform’s development and drive a technological revolution in the sport.