By
Bhushan Akolkar
April 22nd, 2024
The NEAR Foundation has become the official blockchain partner for ICC in a bid to help fans interact more with their favorite teams and players.
The NEAR Foundation, the founder of the NEAR protocol blockchain which was designed as a community-run cloud computing platform, has announced a strategic partnership with the International Cricket Council (ICC), a global governing body of cricket, to develop a Web 3.0 fan engagement platform. According to the announcement, the NEAR Foundation will become the official blockchain partner for the ICC. To inaugurate the partnership, the two entities plan to release a web3 platform for the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup held in India starting on October 5.
Notably, the Web 3.0 fan engagement platform built on the NEAR’s Blockchain Operating System (B.O.S) will enable the participants to choose from three choices including batting, bowling, and fielding. Once a player has built their strategy the respective team participating in the ICC men’s World Cup will receive points based on the real-life performance of the players they picked.
*chirp chirp*
Hear that? That’s the sound of crickets 🦗
Oh never mind, we got mixed up.
That’s the sound of a new era of fan engagement in cricket as the NEAR Foundation partners with the International Cricket Council (@ICC) to usher in the next level of fan engagement 🏏 pic.twitter.com/xIh6nQ1iqE
— NEAR Protocol (@NEARProtocol) September 27, 2023
During the matches, a leaderboard will track each fan’s performance with weekly winners expected to be awarded prizes including match tickets, exclusive events, Men’s Cricket World Cup merchandise, and many more.
NEAR Foundation and ICC’s Strategic Partnership
According to Chris Donovan, the Chief Executive Officer at NEAR Foundation, the strategic partnership with the International Cricket Council will set a new era of sports engagement through the Web3 industry. Moreover, cricket is a popular game not only in India but also in many other global markets where competitions are held including Australia and the United States.
“Given the immense size and popularity of cricket, the NEAR ecosystem will potentially be exposed to hundreds of millions of cricket fans who will have the opportunity to learn about NEAR Foundation’s mission of increasing the adoption of an open web, and get the chance to interact with Web3 use cases built on the Blockchain Operating System,” Donovan noted.
Notably, the partnership between the NEAR Foundation and the International Cricket Council is expected to run through the end of 2025. Meanwhile, the two entities plan to develop more web3 use cases that enable vigorous fan engagement with their favorite teams. One of the projects in the pipeline is the development of a fan passport that allows them to record their memories and actions on the blockchain.
“We are excited to embark on this partnership with NEAR Foundation and to use their technology and network of talent to create better and deeper fan engagement around the globe,” Finn Bradshaw, Head of Digital at the ICC, noted.
Following the announcement, NEAR price edged 1 percent higher in the past 24 hours to trade around $1.08 on Thursday.