人工智能、区块链、和沉浸式技术

CSMRESEARCHREPORT

AI,BLOCKCHAIN,

ANDIMMERSIVETECHNOLOGIES

METAVERSALBUSINESSMODELSOFPROFESSIONALFOOTBALLCLUBSIN2030

INTRODUCTION

Dearreaders,

AtthelatestsinceFacebook’srebrandingtoMetainOctober2021,themetaverseanditsunderlyingtechnologieshavebe-comeprominentandcaptivatingtopicsofdiscussionwithinthesportsindustry.Anofteninsufficientlyspecifiedbuzzword,themetaverseisbestunderstoodasanewiterationoftheinternetthatutilizesvirtualreality(VR)andaugmentedreality(AR)hardware,blockchaintechnologyandavatarswithinanewintegrationofphysi-calandvirtualworlds(e.g.,Leeetal.,2021;Newton,2021).Inthisamalgamationofimmersivetechnologiesandexperiences,non-fungibletokens(NFTs)areemergingascrucialbuildingblocksandarevolution-arytypeofdigitalasset,whichcollective-lyensureunequivocalandindisputableownershipinthemetaverse(e.g.,Weston,2022).AccordingtotheWorldEconomicForum,thetotaladdressablemarketformetaversecouldbeforecastedtoreachupto4.4trillionUSD(Armstrong,2023;LiandWhite,2023).Thehypearoundvirtual

worldsandthetechnologiesthatsupportthemhasdieddownconsiderablyduringspringandsummer2023,astechnologycompaniesandthemarketingworldhaveturnedtheirattentiontoanotherfounda-tionaltechnologyofthemetaverse:gen-erativeAI(Wright,2023).Whilewecanreasonablyassumethatthemetaverseisheretostay(Johnson,2023),thepre-vailinguncertaintysurroundingthecon-ceptofthemetaversehassparkedinquir-iesintothedynamicsofvaluecreationwithinournewdigitalworlds(Tobaccow-ala,2023).Wesimplydon’tknowyetwhatbusinessmodelswillworkinthefuture(Palmer,2023).

Astechnologyadvances,sportsbrandslikeAdidas,Nike,orPumaembracethemetaverseandrelatedtechnologiestoengagewiththeirfansinnewandinno-vativeways.LeaguessuchastheGer-manBundesligahavesecuredlucrativedealstroughthelicensingofglobalrightsfordigitalstickers,digitaltradingcards,andNFTs(e.g.,DFL,2022).AndalsoEu-

ropeanprofessionalfootballclubs(PFCs)haveactivelypositionedthemselvesandpioneeredwithearlyusecasesinthemetaverseeconomy.Thespectrumofinitiativesundertakenbytheseclubsisbroad.EnglishPremierLeagueclubManchesterCity,forexample,hasbegunbuildingvirtualreplicasofitsstadiumtogetfansfromaroundtheworldtovisitvirtuallyviadigitalavatars(e.g.,Peters,2023).TheobjectiveoftheSkyBlues’in-novativedevelopmentprojectistoutilizeAI-controlledcamerastorenderreal-time3Dbroadcastsofmatches,makingthemaccessibletofansinvirtualtwinstadi-umthroughvirtualreality(VR)gear.Otherclubs,suchasFCArsenal,JuventusTu-rin,ParisSt.Germain,andBorussiaDort-mundhaveteamedupwithcryptocom-paniestoissuefantokens.ThesetokensallowfanstobuyNFTsorreceiveexclu-siveadmissionrights,priorityrightstoVIPtickets,orevendecision-makingrights,suchaschoosingthecoloroftheteambusandclubslogan.ACMilanandFiorentinahavemadehistorybycooper-

2

atingwithSerieAtostreamthefirstpro-fessionalfootballmatchonametaverseplatformcalledTheNemesisMetaverse(e.g.,Radnedge,2022).

WhilethesepioneercasesundeniablyshowcasethepotentialforPFCstoex-ploreuniquebusinessopportunities,itre-mainsunclearwhetherthemetaverseanditsfoundationaltechnologiescouldbeagamechangerfortraditionalPFCs’busi-nessmodels.Specifically,willthediffer-enttechnologicalbuildingblocksofthemetaversepossessthepowertoentirelyrevolutionizethebusinessmodelofaPFC?

DELPHISTUDY,12PROJEC-TIONS,AND103EXPERTS

Toanswerthesecrucialquestions,weasked103expertsfrom11countriestoenvisionthefutureofthemetaverse,itsfoundationaltechnologiesandtheirpo-tentialtransformativeimpactonthebusi-nessmodelofPFCsby2030.UtilizingthewidelyrecognizedDelphiapproach(e.g.,Beiderbecketal.,2021a;Merkeletal.,2016;vonderGracht,2012;vonderGrachtetal.,2010),ourexpertpanelassessed12projectionsconcerningthemetaverse’sinfluenceonvariousbusinessmodelcomponentsofPFCs,consistingofvaluecreation,valueproposition,andvaluecapturing.Weusedanestablishedon-lineplatformallowingforareal-timeDel-phiformatwithimmediatecalculationsofgroupstatistics.

Toensureaholisticview,wehaveassem-bledaninterdisciplinarypanelofexperts.Naturally,oursamplecontainstheper-spectiveofprofessionalsfromthefoot-ballindustrysuchasmanagersofPFCs,representativesfromfootballleaguesorassociations,aswellassportsadjacentprofessionalssuchassportsIPholders,broadcasters,andagencies.Tobroadenourperspective,wealsoinvitedexpertsfromacademiaandindividualsspecial-izinginthemetaverseordigitaldomain,suchasdigitalagencies,professionalsfrommetaversebuildingcompanies,anddigitalentrepreneurs.

Ourresearchteam,comprisingmembersfromtheCenterforSportsandManage-mentatWHU–OttoBeisheimSchoolofManagementandtheSchoolofInterna-

tionalBusinessandEntrepreneurshipatSteinbeisUniversityhasindependentlyconductedthisstudybetweenFebruaryandApril2023.Eachofthe103expertsdeterminedtheexpectedprobabilityofagivenprojection,thedesirabilityofitsoccurrence,andthepotentialimpactincaseofoccurrence.Weextendoursinceregratitudeandappreciationtoallexperts,whovolunteeredtoparticipateinthisstudyandmadevaluablecontributionstoourresearchandthisreport.Inadditiontothequantitativeassessmentsofthe12Delphiprojections,theyprovided590writ-tentextanswers,whichisanindicationoftheircommitmentandcontributiontothehighqualityoftheconductedDelphistudy.

THEMETAVERSEWILLSIGNIFICANTLYCHANGEPFCs´BUSINESSMODELBY2030

Overall,ourpanelof103expertsunan-imouslyagreesthatthemetaversewillimpactaPFC´sbusinessmodelby2030.Especiallyimmersivetechnologyhard-wareandmetaversepartnershipswilltransformvaluecreationinPFCs.So,ourexpertpanelconsensuallyexpectsachangeofhowvalueiscreatedbyPFCsin2030.Thischangeprimarilyemerg-esthroughtheutilizationofimmersivetechnologyhardware,suchasARhead-sets,andVRglasses,asanintegralpartofPFCs´entertainmentproductofthefu-ture(projection#02,76%probability)withahighpotentialforenhancedstadiumex-periencebothathomeandatthevenue,elevatedlevelsofengagement,andinno-vativerevenuestreamsinthemetaverserealm.Toleveragetheirexpertiseandtocharttheappropriatepathintheemerg-ingmetaverse,thepanelalsoexpectsPFCstolikelyformmultiplenewcommer-cialpartnershipswithmetaversebuildingorservicecompanies(#04,70%).Ontheotherhand,theexpertsremainundecid-ed,butitappearspossibletothem,thatPFCsmightcreateanewdedicatedpo-sitiontointernalizerelevantmetaverseknowledgeandcapabilitiesandthusem-phasizethesignificanceofthemetaverseforthefuturebusinessmodel(#01,68%).Asforthereorganizationofinter-nalprocessesandstructuresthroughmetaverseunderlyingtechnologies,suchasusingblockchain-basedsmartcon-tractsasastandardtomanagelicensed

playerteams(#04,51%),theexperts,generallyassignarelativelylowprobabil-itytothisprojection.Thereisskepticismaboutthetangibleefficiencybenefitsofsuchanapproach,withsomeexpertsgoingasfaraslabelingita“technicalsolutionlookingforaproblem.”

WEB3APPLICATIONSANDITSAPPEALTONEWCUSTOMERSEGMENTSWILLINNOVATEPFCs´VALUEPROPOSITION

Inthefuture,thevaluepropositionofaPFCisexpectedtoundergochangesinthemetaverse,incorporatingnewwaysofcustomerandfaninteraction.Web3ap-plications,likedigitaltradingcardsandpay-to-wintransactions,arelikelytobeintegratedintodailybusinessby2030(#08,72%),withaparticularfocusonen-gagingthetech-savvyyoungergener-ationanddispersedinternationalfans.Accordingtoourexpertsthisinteractiveapproachcouldalsoleadtotheattrac-tionofnewcustomersegments,con-tributingtoasignificantB2Ccustomergrowthby2030(#06,66%).WhenlookingatthefutureproductofferingofPFCsinthemetaverse,i.e.,virtualgoodsandser-vices,anditsimpactontheoverallrev-enuestructure,ourexpertsbelievethatasignificantchangeispossiblewithoutshowingstrongsupport(#05,60%).ThisisinlinewithourDelphipanel´santicipa-tionthattheexpectedprobabilityofPFCstakingacross-industrialmarketleaderpositioninowningmultiplemetaversepresenceswillnotbeextensivelyhigh(projection#07,59%),mainlyduetoahighlevelofmanagerialreservationtomakesuchsubstantialinvestments.

ARTIFICIALINTELLIGENCE(AI)ANDNEWREVENUEMODELSINTHEMETAVERSEWILLIMPROVEPFCs´VALUECAPTURING

OurexpertsconsensuallyexpectthattheutilizationofAIinthemetaversewillhaveahighimpactonthefuturemarketingcostofPFCsandwillsignificantlyreduceadvertis-ingexpensesby2030(#12,75%).Itmustbeadded,though,thatsomeexpertsexplicitlyseetherevolutionarypoweroftransforma-tionthroughAIevenwithoutthecontextualapplicationinthemetaverse.Theconcept

Inthisreport,thegenericmasculineisusedforbetter

readability.However,thisincludesallgenders. 3

PAGE

20

intensityandqualityoffanandcustomerinteractionandengagement.However,thecommentsalsohighlightthatdifferentPFCsmightexperiencevaryingimpacts,andthereareconcernsthatthemeta-versecouldwidenthegapbetweentopEuropeanPFCsandotherclubs.

Moreover,theexpertsconsistentlyem-phasizethatfootballfanscouldfrequent-lydisplayresistancewhenitcomestoembracinginnovativeideasintroducedbyPFCs.Thispredispositiontowardstra-ditionalfootballcausesPFCstoantici-pateslow-changingconsumerbehavior.Subsequently,thismayleadtohesitancyinexploringinnovativeapproachestotransformtheirbusinessmodeltoextendbeyondthecurrentstate.Additionally,theexpertsvoicesignificantconcernsaboutthemanagerialcapabilitiesandtheex-tentofreceptivenesstowardsinnova-tionandexploratoryendeavorswithintheleadershipofPFCs.

offansupporteddecentralizedautono-mousorganizations(DAOs),ontheotherhand,isnotexpectedtohaveasignificantimpactonimprovingPFCs´coststruc-turesbyintroducingbeneficialfinancingconditions(#11,50%).Whilethemetaverseshowspotentialtoimprovevaluecaptur-ingbyworkingonthecostside,ourDelphipanelalsoestimatesthatnewrevenuemodelsarepossibleinthemetaverse.Theycanbeachievedthroughe.g.,platformfeesfromtransactionsbetweenfans,commer-cialpartners,andmediapartners(#10,65%)aswellascontinuousroyaltypay-ments(projection#09,65%).Asforplat-formfees,someofourexpertsarguethattherearealreadyencouragingexamplesofnetworksandtransactionalplatforms,suchasTwitch,Whatnot,orDiscord,thathavesuccessfullyimplementedearningtransactionfeesonmicropayments–cer-tainlypavingapotentialpathwayforPFCsandenablingthecreationofownfan-cen-tricmetaversemarketplaces.

THEMETAVERSEWILLRETAINITSGLOBALSIGNIFICANCEBUTWILLNOTMEANANEQUALOPPORTUNITYFORALLPFCs

Overall,ourexperts’viewsontheprojec-tionsvarysignificantly,onlytwooutoftwelveprojectionsachievedconsensusintheexpectedprobabilitiesofoccurrence(#02,#12).Thislowdegreeofconsensusamongtheexpertshighlightsthecon-troversialandmultifacetednatureofthemetaverseasatopicofdiscussion.Italsoreflectsthespecificstaticsofversatilebusinessmodelsinthefootballindustry,wheretheimpactofinnovationandtrans-formationforceselicitsdiverseperspec-tivesandviewpoints.Whenaskedaboutthedegreeofpotentialbusinessmodelinnovationonascalerangingfromincre-mentalchange(AAA)toradicalinnova-tion(BBB),theexpertpanelassessedittobestronglyincremental(fallingbetweenthetwo-scalepointsAandA/B),withoutreachingconsensusonthisquestion.

Intheirqualitativecommentsacrossvar-iousprojections,ourexpertspointoutthatPFCsarewell-positionedtoenterthemetaversesinceentertainmentwillbeacorefoundationofthisnewdigitalrealm.TheybelievethatPFCscanleveragetheirbrandpullonaglobalscaleandreachnewcustomersegments,whileenhancingthe

Weanticipatethemetaversetocontinuetobeofglobalsocietalsignificance,notatleastbecauseoftherecentfervorignitedbytheproductpresentationofthemixedreality(MR)headset“AppleVisionPro”(Apple,2023;Scheueret.al,2023),andrecentChinesegovernmentinitiativespromotingfinancialsupportofmetaversetechnologiesacrossthecountry(e.g.,Jansen,2023;TechNodeFeed,2023).Despitetherelativelylowconsensusontheexpectedprobabilitiesofourprojec-tions,wedonotunderestimatethepo-tentialfutureinfluenceofthemetaverseonexistingbusinessmodels.Quitetothecontrary,akintotheinternetwhichwasoccasionallydismissedasa“passingfad”intheearly2000s(Chapman,2000),webelievethemetaversehasasignificanttransformativepower.Duetoitscomplex-ity,thistransformativepotentialcurrent-lymaynotgenerateunanimousopinions.Nonetheless,PFCswillinevitablyengagewiththemetaverse,whetheroutofantici-pationornecessity.Welookforwardtofurtherdiscourseonthistopicwhetheritoccursinthestandsofthephysicalstadi-umsortheirmetaversetwins..

Authors

Prof.Dr.SaschaL.Schmidt,Prof.Dr.HeikovonderGracht,Dr.DanielBeiderbeck,GerritHeidemann

CONTENT

12PROJECTIONSONTHEIMPACTOFTHEMETAVERSEONTHEBUSINESSMODELOFPROFESSIONALFOOTBALLCLUBS(PFCs)

#01:

By2030,PFCsemployadedicated“HeadofMetaverse”toexplore,detectanddevelopnewbusinessopportunitiesinthemetaverseeconomy.

6

#02:

By2030,PFCsuseimmersivetechnologyhardwareasanintegralpartoftheircoreentertainmentproductfootball.

7

#03:

By2030,PFCsuseblockchainbasedsmartcontractsasastandardtomanagetheirlicenseplayerteams.

8

#04:

By2030,PFCshaveenteredmultiplecommercialpartnershipswithmetaversebuildingorservicecompanies.

9

#05:

By2030,PFCsearnmorethan5%oftheiroverallrevenuethroughvirtualgoodsandservicesinthemetaverse.

10

#06:

By2030,PFCshavegrowntheirglobalB2Ccustomerbasebymorethan10%comparedto2022throughthemetaverse.

11

#07:

By2030,PFCsarecross-industrymarketleadersintermsofowningmultiplepresencesonmetaverseplatforms.

12

#08:

By2030,theintegrationofweb3applicationsintodailybusinesshassignificantlyimprovedPFCs´interactionwiththeirfans.

13

#09:

By2030,PFCsearnperpetualroyaltiesfromactivitiesinthemetaverse.

14

#10:

By2030,PFCsearnplatformfeesfromtransactionsbetweentheirfans,commercialandmediapartnersontheirmetaversepremises.

15

#11:

By2030,fansupporteddecentralizedautonomousorganizations(DAOs)providesignificantfinancialsupportfortheimplementationofPFCs´investments.

16

#12:

By2030,artificialintelligence(AI)poweredadvertisinginthemetaversehassignificantlyreducedPFCs´marketingcostforenteringthelongtail.

17

ATAGLANCE:ALL12PROJECTIONS 18

STUDYDESIGNANDMETHODOLOGY 19

ABOUTTHEWHU,THECSM,ANDTHEAUTHORS 20

REFERENCES 22

#01

HEADSOFMETAVERSE

BY2030,PROFESSIONALFOOTBALLCLUBS(PFCs)EMPLOYADEDICATED“HEADOFMETAVERSE”TOEXPLORE,DETECTANDEXPLOITNEWBUSINESSOPPORTUNITIESINTHEMETAVERSEECONOMY.

68

%

5.1

of7

5.0

of7

EXPECTEDLIKELIHOOD

IMPACT

DESIRABILITY

“ITWOULDBEAGOODTHINGIFPROFESSIONALFORCESINTHECLUBSWITHCLEARRESPONSIBILITYAND

EXPERTISEWERETODRIVEFORWARDTECHNOLOGICALDEVELOPMENTSANDTAKESIGNIFICANTRESPONSIBILITYFORTHEM.THISISSIMPLYAQUESTIONOF

WILLINGNESSTOINVEST.”

“THEMORELIKELYOUTCOMEISTHATPFCsWILL

EMPLOYSUPPLIERSTOMANAGETHISFORTHEMANDNOTMANAGETHETECHINTERNALLY.[…]THEREAL

KNOWLEDGEWILLLIEWITHTHETECHNICALSUPPLIER/AGENCIES.”

PROARGUMENTS

ASTHEMETAVERSEEMERGES,ITEXPEDITESTHELONG-OVERDUEPRIORITIZATIONOFDIGITALPOSITIONSWITHINPFCs,FOSTERINGASEAMLESSCONNECTIONBETWEENINNOVATIVE

ANDTRADITIONALBUSINESSMODELS.

CONARGUMENTS

PFCsMAYOPTTOLEVERAGEEXTERNALAGENCIESOR

UTILIZEEXISTINGINTERNALPOSITIONSWITHSHAREDRESPON-SIBILITIESFORTHEMETAVERSE,RATHERTHANINVESTINGIN

ADEDICATEDROLEINTERNALLY.

METAVERSETALENTINTHEINTERNALHRSTRUCTUREISIMPERATIVEFORPFCsTOCULTIVATENEWCOMPETENCIESAND

UNLOCKNEWBUSINESSOPPORTUNITIESANDREVENUESTREAMS.

INTERNALBUDGETANDSALARYCOSTJUSTIFICATION

ANDUNCLEARRETURNONINVESTMENTMAYHINDERMOSTOFPFCsTOINVESTINTOTHISNEWPOSITIONINTERNALLY.

FOLLOWINGINDUSTRIESSUCHASFAST-MOVINGCONSUMERGOODS(FMCG),PFCsAREMOTIVATEDTOADOPTMETAVERSESTRATEGIES,HIRINGHEADSOFMETAVERSETOENHANCETHEIRECOMMERCECAPABILITIESANDBRANDPRESENCE.

THEPRESENCEOFTRADITIONALTHINKINGANDINTERNALPOWERDYNAMICSWITHINPFCsMAYIMPEDETHEESTABLISH-MENTOFANEWMETAVERSE-FOCUSEDPOSITION.

Thepresenceofa“HeadofMetaverse”positioninPFCsby2030,lacksconsensusamongourDelphiexperts,withcon-cernsbeingraisedregardingitsreturnoninvestment.WhileourexpertsfinditratherconceivablethatheadsofmetaversebecomeastandardpositioninPFCs,thereisamoderatede-greeofambivalenceconcerningthisprojection.Theexpectedlikelihoodofoccurrenceforprojection#01,withaprobabilityof68%,isslightlyaboveaverage,alongwithslightlyaboveav-eragedesirabilityandimpact.OurDelphiexpertpanelarguesthatintraorganizationalchallengesmustbeaddressedforthesuccessfulimplementationofsuchaposition.Topmanage-

mentplaysakeyroleindevelopingaclearmetaversestrate-gytocapitalizeonfuturerevenueopportunities.Explicitman-agementsupportandaredefinedunderstandingofPFCsasentertainmentcompanieswouldfacilitatetheimplemen-tationofaheadofmetaverseposition.Thequalitativecom-mentssupporttheideathathavingsuchadedicatedpositioniscrucialforPFCstosucceedinthemetaverse.Whenbuildingmetaversecompetencies,ourDelphiexpertsconsiderboth,developingthosewithintheexistingteamviasharedrespon-sibilities,andseekingexternalsuppliersasequallyreasonableapproachesalongsidetherecruitmentofaheadofmetaverse.

#02

IMMERSIVETECHNOLOGYHARDWARE(AR/VR)

BY2030,PROFESSIONALFOOTBALLCLUBS(PFCs)USEIMMERSIVETECHNOLOGYHARDWAREASANINTEGRALPARTOFTHEIRCOREENTERTAINMENTPRODUCTFOOTBALL.

76 5.5

% of7

5.2

of7

EXPECTEDLIKELIHOOD

IMPACT

DESIRABILITY

PROARGUMENTS

THEGENERATIONALSHIFTINCONSUMERBEHAVIORANDEVOLVINGFANDEMANDSAREEXPECTEDTODRIVETHEADOPTI-ONOFNEWTECHNOLOGYHARDWAREANDPUSHPFCsTOOFFER

MOREIMMERSIVEEXPERIENCES.

CONARGUMENTS

THEOVERALLDEVELOPMENTSTAGEOFIMMERSIVETECHNO-LOGYHARDWAREANDITSPRACTICALUSABILITYFORREALCONSUMERUSECASESCOULDPRESENTABARRIERTOITS

APPLICATIONINSPORTS.

THEEXPANSIONOFIMMERSIVEOFFERINGSEMPOWERSPFCsTOPROVIDEASENSEOFPROXIMITYFORREMOTEGLOBALFANS,BRIDGINGTHEGAPANDCREATINGANENGAGINGEXPERIENCE

DESPITETHEPHYSICALDISTANCE.

LOWMARKETPENETRATION,CONSUMERACCEPTANCE,ANDAFFORDABILITYOFVRANDARTECHNOLOGYCOULDPRESENTSIGNIFICANTCHALLENGESFORPFCsINTHEIREFFORTSTO

EXTENSIVELYIMPLEMENTTHESETECHNOLOGIES.

AUGMENTEDREALITY(AR)ANDVIRTUALREALITY(VR)TECHNO-LOGIESMAYENHANCETHESTADIUMEXPERIENCEBOTHATHOMEANDINTHEVENUE,OFFERINGELEVATEDLEVELSOFENGAGE-MENTANDSERVINGASVALUABLETOOLSFORINTRODUCINGIN-NOVATIVEREVENUESTREAMSBEYONDTRADITIONALTICKETING.

“IDOBELIEVETHATWEWILLSEEPFCsOFFERINGMETAVERSESTADIUMTICKETS,WHICHBRINGFANSASCLOSEASTHEYCANGETTOTHESTADIUMEXPERIENCE[…]THATOPENS

ANEWBUSINESSCASEFORPFCs[…]ANDCANIMPACTNEWREVENUESTREAMSNOTONLYFROMTICKETING.”

FANSKEPTICISM,MISPERCEIVEDFANDEMANDREGARDINGARANDVR,ANDPOTENTIALNEGATIVEIMPACTOFARTECHNOLOGYONSTADIUMATMOSPHEREMAYPREVENTTHEAPPLICATIONOFIMMERSIVETECHNOLOGYHARDWARE.

“VRANDARARESTILLVERYFARFROMPERFECTIONFORPROVIDINGASEAMLESSEXPERIENCE.LOOKAT

WHATHAPPENEDTO3D-TV.IAMJUSTNOTCONFIDENTTHISCANORWILLHAPPENANYTIMESOON.”

ItistheconsensusofourDelphiexpertsthatPFCswilluseim-mersivetechnologyhardwareasanintegralpartoftheircoreentertainmentproductfootball.Withaprobabilityof76%,theexpectedlikelihoodofoccurrenceforprojection#02issignifi-cantlyaboveaverage,withimpactanddesirabilitysimilarlyhigh.Infact,amongall12projections,ourDelphiexpertsratethispro-jectionthehighest.Qualitativecommentsindicatethattheex-pertsarelargelyconvincedthatARandVRhardwarewillbeasignificantelementofbusinessmodelinnovationby2030.Theybelievethatimmersivetechnologyhardwarenotonlyholdsval-

ueforclubsinengagingfansandboostingrevenuestreamsbutalsoalignswithchangingconsumerbehaviorandevolvingfanpreferences.Whiletheexpertpanelgenerallysupportsthisprojection,theirviewsonimmersivetechnologyvary.Theydis-tinguishbetweenpotentialusecasesforVRandARhardware,leaningslightlytowardsvirtualrealityduetoitshigherperceivedvalueandpotentialusecases,suchasconnectingwithglob-alfans,enhancingthehomeviewingexperience,andelevatingcontenttoamoreengagingandimmersivelevel.

#03

SMARTCONTRACTS

BY2030,PROFESSIONALFOOTBALLCLUBS(PFCs)USEBLOCKCHAINBASEDSMARTCONTRACTSASASTANDARDTOMANAGETHEIRLICENSEPLAYERTEAMS.

51

%

4.4

of7

4.3

of7

EXPECTEDLIKELIHOOD

IMPACT

DESIRABILITY

“SMARTCONTRACTSCOULDADDALOTTOTHEOVERALLPFC’sECONOMY.ASITHINKTHATPROFESSIONAL

SPORTSBUSINESSMODELSSHOULDBEHEAVILYDIS-RUPTEDINTHEUPCOMINGYEARS,ITWILLONLYGROW

THENEEDFORSMARTCONTRACTS.”

“THISVERYMUCHDEPENDSONTHEWILLINGNESSANDKNOWLEDGEOFMANAGERS[…]TOLEVERAGETHOSE

OPPORTUNITIES.CURRENTLY,IDON’THAVEMUCHFAITHINMANAGERSUNDERSTANDINGTHEBENEFITSOFBLOCKCHAINTECHNOLOGIESINGENERAL.”

PROARGUMENTS

BLOCKCHAINTECHNOLOGYHASTHEPOTENTIALTOREDUCEPROCESSCOSTS,ENHANCETRANSPARENCY,ANDSTREAMLINEEFFICIENCYINTHEPLAYERTRANSFERMARKETFORPFCs.

CONARGUMENTS

THEPRESENCEOFDIVERSEREGULATIONSFROMLEGISLA-TIVEBODIESANDFOOTBALLASSOCIATIONSCANCREATESIGNIFICANTHURDLESFORTHEWIDESPREADADOPTIONOFBLOCKCHAIN-BASEDSMARTCONTRACTS.

PFCsMIGHTSTRATEGICALLYUTILIZEBLOCKCHAIN-BASEDSMARTCONTRACTSBYFACILITATINGTHETOKENIZATIONOFPLAYERS’ASSOCIATEDLICENSEVALUEANDOFFERINGSUPPORTERSTHEOPPORTUNITYTOINVESTINHIGHLYSPECIFICASSETS/REVENUE-BEARINGTOKENS.

THEADVANTAGESOFIMPLEMENTINGSMARTCONTRACTSINPROFESSIONALFOOTBALLARECONTINGENT,ASPOTENTIALPROCEDURALEFFICIENCYGAINSAPPEARUNCERTAIN.

THEEXISTINGMARKETSTRUCTUREINFOOTBALL,CHARAC-TERIZEDBYADOMINANCEOFTRADITIONALPLAYERAGENTS,MIGHTIMPEDEADOPTIONOFSMARTCONTRACTSINTHECURRENTPLAYERTRANSFERSYSTEM.

ThereisnoconsensusamongourDelphiexpertsregardingwhetherPFCswilluseblockchain-basedsmartcontractsasastandardtomanagetheirlicensedplayerteams.Morespe-cifically,theexpectedprobabilityofoccurrenceforprojection#03isonly51%,whichiswellbelowaverageandmakesittheprojectionwiththesecond-lowestapproval.Similarly,ourex-pertsratedthedesirabilityoftheeventanditspotentialim-pactbelowaverage,withonlyoneotherprojectionbeingcon-sideredlessdesirableandpotentiallyimpactful.Ourexperts’opinionsontheefficiencygainsofsmartcontractsvary.Somerecognizethevalueofblockchaintechnologyforitstranspar-

encyandefficiencybenefits,whileothersconsidersmartcon-tractsunnecessaryforhandlinginternalemployeecontractsandmilestone-basedplayerbonuses,insteadpreferringtradi-tionalcontracts.Manyexpertshighlightthatfootball’sexistinginterestnetworkswilllikelyresisttheimplementationoftrans-parency-enhancingblockchaintechnology.Alsoregulatoryconstraintscouldhinderwidespreadadoptionofblockchaintechnology.However,aminorityofexpertsbelievesinthepo-tentialofblockchain-basedsmartcontractstotokenizeplay-ers’licensevalueforclubsinthefuture.

#04

COMMERCIALPARTNERSHIPS

BY2030,PROFESSIONALFOOTBALLCLUBS(PFCs)HAVEENTEREDMULTIPLECOMMERCIALPARTNERSHIPSWITHMETAVERSEBUILDINGORSERVICECOMPANIES.

70

%

4.8

of7

4.8

of7

EXPECTEDLIKELIHOOD

IMPACT

DESIRABILITY

PROARGUMENTS

NEWFORMSOFPARTNERSHIPS,INCLUDINGCRYPTOSPONSOR-SHIPSANDMETAVERSEBRANDLICENSEFEES,ANDTHEEMER-GENCEOFNEWPARTNERCOMPANIES(E.G.,CRYPTOFIRMSANDGEARMANUFACTURERS),WILLDRIVEPFCsTOACTIVELYEXPLORENOVELCOOPERATIONNETWORKS.

CONARGUMENTS

RECENTINSTANCESOFFINANCIALDEFAULTAMONGCRYPTOCOMPANIESANDTHEUSEOFDARKPATTERNSINTHEIRBUSINESSPRACTICESMIGHTCREATESIGNIFICANTREPUTATIONALANDFINANCIALRISKSFORPFCBRANDS,POTENTIALLYLEADINGTOTHEREJECTIONOFSUCHPARTNERSHIPS.

DUETOASCARCITYOFINHOUSEEXPERTISE,FORMINGPARTNERSHIPSWILLBETHENATURALCOURSEFORCLUBSTOLEVERAGETHESTRENGTHSPARTNERSTOINCREASEPFCs´METAVERSECAPABILITIESANDOFFERINGS.

ALACKOFOPENNESSTONEWPARTNERSHIPSANDOFINTERNALCHANGEMANAGEMENTTOBUILDCAPABILITIESTOACTIVATE

THEPOTENTIALOFSUCHPARTNERSHIPSCOULDBEALIMITINGFACTORFORPFCs.

PARTNERSHIPSBETWEENPFCsANDMETAVERSECOMPANIESMIGHTUNLOCKNEWREVENUESTREAMSANDTAPINTONEWCUSTOMERSEGMENTSBYEXPANDINGPFC´sGLOBALREACH.

“ALREADYTODAY,CLUBSAREPARTNERINGWITHAWIDERANGEOFBLOCKCHAINANDCRYPTOCOMPANIESTOTRANSITIONTHEIRIPINTOTHEDIGITALERA,

THROUGH[…]IP-DEALS,SPONSORSHIPS,ORWHITE-

LABELEDPRODUCTSOLUTIONS.”

THEGEOPOLITICALSITUATION,EXEMPLIFIEDBYTHEEXISTINGTRENDTOWARDDECOUPLINGINTHEDIGITALSPHERES,ASSO-CIATEDWITHTHELONG-TERMGEO-ECONOMICCRISISAFTERCOVID-19,MAYDETERINVESTMENTSANDCOMMERCIALPARTNER-SHIPSBETWEENPFCsANDPOTENTIALPARTNERS.

“AFTERTHEIMPACTOFTHECRYPTOCRASHONSPORTSSPONSORSHIPS,PFCsANDLEAG