Blockchain and football
Invest in football players and earn money: the MeCarreira football exchange wants to make it possible
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A new platform aims to improve the career opportunities of unknown footballers. It introduces its own digital currency – the so-called player coins.
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A new way to discover football talents: the MeCarreira platform.
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What is the goal of the platform?
The MeCarreira football exchange, launched in August 2022, aims to support young footballers in their careers. In particular, young talents must be reached who hardly have the opportunity to present themselves in football.
But the way a footballer receives support is extraordinary: everyone should have the opportunity to invest money in players via the MeCarreira football exchange to raise their level of awareness in the real world, but also in the digital world. The investment is made in the form of digital currency, you get the so-called player’s coin.
Player coin trading is a similar principle to stock or cryptocurrency trading. The invested money does not go directly to the player, the player becomes the (commercial) object of desire on MeCarreira. Ultimately, as an investor, you should earn money from a player’s potentially successful career.
What is MeCarreira’s goal?
Founder and former FCZ player Heinz Ernst explains: “Young players from all over the world can use our platform to draw attention to themselves. Because only talent and not connections or luck should determine whether a young footballer goes far, no matter where you were born. “With the help of a blockchain technology expert, the project was created at the interface between business and sport .
What is the blockchain?
The technology of the future
Blockchain is a new type of technology that enables secure and tamper-proof transactions on the internet. It is a data store that is securely managed and controlled by many computer networks rather than by a single central system (such as a bank).
The more information is stored within a system, the longer the blockchain (chain block or data chain) becomes. The advantage lies in transparency: data within a chain link cannot be changed, copied or deleted from the Internet. In addition, transaction times and costs are kept to a minimum. Blockchain technology is already used for the acquisition of cryptocurrencies.
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This is how blockchain technology works.
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How is the blockchain used on MeCarreira?
Smart contracts as data chains
The purchase of the player’s coin, which is used to invest in players, is done on the Polygon blockchain platform. The player coins used in MeCarreira are a collection of smart contracts (data chains). With each purchase, the data chain is extended and information is securely stored. All data is managed in a decentralized way (no third party involvement). MeCarreira is just the platform for players to toss their coins.
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How does the platform work and who can participate?
A young football talent, an amateur but also an experienced professional can create an account on MeCarreira and thus launch their own player coin. The player’s currency is the heart of MeCarreira, which is managed exclusively by the players themselves. Player coins only exist from verified players who must identify themselves via face check and an ID card.
Each player can develop independently in the digital space, for example by documenting their career in football exchanges and interacting directly with investors and fans. The idea is that you can experience the player’s career up close. This can take the form of digital or physical merchandising (example: receiving players’ clothing).
As an investor, you now have the opportunity to support a player by purchasing the coin because you believe in the player’s potential. The more investors invest in that player, the more valuable a player’s player coin becomes. Coins can of course be sold by investors (and by the player himself if he has invested) at any time.
As an investor, do you have a say and do you have a stake in transfers and contracts?
“Investors or holders of Player Coin are not entitled to a player’s decisions or earnings when they sign a contract,” says Marco Casanova, Head of Partnerships and Communications at MeCarreira. “However, so-called third party ownership would not be allowed,” continues Manuel Bertschi, lawyer for sports and media law. Therefore no third party can have an economic interest or even only a say in a possible future transfer of a player.
Who gets the money invested and how does MeCarreira earn?
The player himself receives no money when his coins are purchased. However, the player is supported by every investment by increasing his level of awareness. The earlier you invest, the more money you can potentially earn as an investor.
MeCarreira’s business model is to earn money by buying or selling a player coin. Each transaction carries fees, most of which go to the platform.
–The platform logo.
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How can professionals promote young talent on the platform?
Football professionals have the ability to enroll up to five players, or add them to their account. On the one hand, they have the opportunity to increase their popularity, on the other hand, draft players receive a share of the money if the professional player’s coin is successfully sold.
Does the platform compete with clubs?
Communications Manager Marco Casanova says: “We are in contact with clubs at home and abroad and are presenting the platform. It shouldn’t be a club competition, but a supplement. Obviously, the sooner a talent shows up on MeCarreira, the sooner he can build his own brand. “The player can increase his value in the digital space, but the club also benefits. According to Casanova, clubs are interested and therefore see opportunities in the concept. .
What can a player do and not do on the platform?
In principle, everyone has the right to their own name. So the player does not enter the platform with his profile as a (professional) footballer, but with his personal profile. As a professional, however, it really comes down to what legal agreements are established in his contract.
If a player gives up his personal rights, such as the right to his own likeness, he would not be allowed to post a photo wearing his club’s shirt on MeCarreira or on social media without the club’s permission. “Clubs often acquire at least some of the marketing rights to the image and name of famous players, which receive substantial sums in return,” says media law expert Manuel Bertschi.
–Earn big bucks by selling marketing rights: Lionel Messi (2nd from left) and Cristiano Ronaldo (2nd from right).
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“As digitization progresses, the question of who is still allowed to do what and what not is becoming more and more important. A club has a great interest in a player who advertises himself well, since usually the club benefits from it, “explain both Marco Casanova and Manuel Bertschi. When a club buys a famous player, the club benefits from the player’s strong presence. .
Another aspect is the auction or sale of personal items (shirts or shoes) on the platform. This is easily possible, although the player must also respect the existing contracts that he has entered into. However, we are available to players for legal issues, “says communications manager Marco Casanova.
When will the first players arrive at MeCarreira?
The plan is for the first professional players to go live on the platform in September 2022. But the platform is already there now active.
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