Sports betting and non-fungible tokens, or “NFTs," have a lot more in common than meets the eye.
The barroom setting makes sense. Sports betting and NFTs have seen a surge over the past few years, with states increasingly legalizing sports betting while NFT popularity simultaneously booms.
The “Roundtable," the founding team behind Knights of Degen, has put together an NFT project that they say embraces the best of both worlds.
They’ll have a chance to strengthen this bond when they release their NFTs on public mint Thursday on the NFT’s main blockchain, Ethereum, and when all art for these tokens is released October 7.
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Who Are In The Knights Of Degen’s Roundtable?
The Roundtable is comprised of co-founders Jared Augustine, Drew Austin, Brendon Augustine, Jack Settleman, Alex Sheinman, Clay Sutton, Mike O’Day, and Peter Greczner.
Other notable names involved with the project are Jerry Ferrara of TV shows Entourage and Power; and Tiki Barber and Ronde Barber, the retired twin NFL players.
The Roundtable said they aim to bring together people at the intersection of sports betting, NFTs, and community, even going way beyond just owning a limited-edition NFT.
Art tease for Knights of Degen full art release, coming October 7 (Art by Blake Jamieson)
“We wanted a light vibe, not to take ourselves too seriously," Augustine said. “Gambling on the couch on a Sunday is not typically your finest hour. We thought knights were fun characters, the clunky armor, Monty Python, etc. … lots to work with from a lore and gaming perspective."
Whatever they think about the prowess of the lounging bettor, they’ve embraced gamification in their community building:
- KOD tokens have been strategically released in waves. Just 2,088 Early Access Mint Passes were printed at the outset; the company said they sold out within an hour. The price of each mint pass was 0.088 Ethereum plus gas to burn it.
- At Thursday’s public launch, each Knight will retain the same cost as the mint pass. By owning the mint pass, you can “burn" it for a Knight.
- Along with having access to your Knight with the mint pass, miners also had the choice to purchase an additional 2 Knights in a presale event.
NFT chasers want unique artwork — a piece of creativity to be proud of. KOD’s spin on this involves creating diverse characters and icons in an ornate universe — or “metaverse."
Each individual Knight is uniquely programmed and generated from 188-plus possible traits that include body type, armor, weapon, and headwear. In KoD’s words, “While all are winners, some Knights are rarer than others," and buyers could wind up enjoying a wide range of possible returns on their investment during their quests.
“To me, NFT art is legacy art, so my focus is making something that will still be relevant, interesting, and relatable in 100 years," Jamieson said. “I would describe the Knights of Degen style as ‘championistic.'"
“Designing for Knights of Degen has been lots of late nights, caffeine, and beer. Fortunately getting into character for this Degen project comes naturally."
Betting On A New Camelot
If we were to draw a Venn diagram of bettors and crypto “punks," as they’re affectionately called, we’d wind up with something close to a circle.
In fact, according to a recent Morning Consult study,"72% of sports bettors said they’re familiar with cryptocurrency," and 27% of sports fans who responded say they own some form of a digital coin.
“Crypto, by nature right now, is a very risky investment, and you have to be able to stomach big swings,” Settleman said. “That’s similar to the sports betting community. At the end of the day, though, sports bettors really love being in a strong community of like-minded people.”
Art tease for Knights of Degen full art release, coming October 7 (Art by Blake Jamieson)
The Knights of Degen strive to capture this fervor in decentralized finance (DeFi) through their Discord channel, a chat software popular in streaming programs and other communities. This group will have access to sports insiders that provide daily sports betting advice.
Knights will also have access to free entry pools throughout the sports calendar that will have cash and crypto prizes. While anyone can join the Discord channel, certain channels within the Discord will be token-restricted.
All NFT owners will share a portion of “The King’s Purse," a portfolio to which all Knights are entitled. Some of the NFTs that will be portioned out to Knights through the King’s Purse will be other popular tokens and experiences like NBA Top Shot Moments and ZED Run digital horses.
Knights will also be able to grab the soon-to-be-established $DEGEN token, which will act as the official currency of the kingdom. Tokens will unlock liquidity and other opportunities.
In short, owners will be paid a passive income that looks to help all members involved — along with other far-reaching goals.
Augustine wants KOD to become “a sports and entertainment property of consequence in the metaverse, but in the short term, it’s all about gathering a" premium collection and destination for sports fans and athletes who love to bet on sports and love NFTs."
Settleman added goals of partnering with “sportsbooks, fantasy companies, and gaming companies."
Who says couch gamblers can’t have big ideas?
Find more information at Knights of Degen’s website, OpenSea, and their Discord channel.
Knights of Degen NFT Event Calendar
9/7 - Open the Knights Survivor Pool for cash prize to all Discord members9/9 - Private pre-sale Mint Pass event9/9 - Thursday Night Football insider AMA9/10 - Open first weekly pick-em pool to all Discord members9/13 - Complete first King’s Purse acquisition, a Z2 Legendary Nakamoto, Zed Run racehorse9/16 - Art tease9/22 & 9/23 - Redemption Festival for Mint Ticket holders- 9/30: Public mint
- 10/7: Full art reveal
- October: Gate premium Discord channels for Knights only
- October: Open fresh Knights only survivor pool
- Fall/Winter: $DEGEN token is established
- Fall/Winter: Special edition NFT drop to Knights
- February: Big Game event for Knights in Los Angeles
- March: Madness event for Knights in Las Vegas
- 2022: Open the Degen Tavern in the metaverse
NFT Glossary
Non-Fungible Token (NFT)
A Non-Fungible Token, or NFT, is a unique unit of data that is stored on a blockchain. It’s a digital asset that cannot be copied, substituted, or subdivided, and is used to certify the specific digital asset, such as a photo or video.
Ethereum
Ethereum is a blockchain platform with its own cryptocurrency, called Ether (ETH).
Blockchain
Blockchain is a digital database containing information that is decentralized, distributed, and oftentimes public. It is used to record transactions across many computers so these transactions cannot be altered retroactively.
Cryptocurrency
Cryptocurrency is a digital currency that only exists digitally and uses a decentralized system to record transactions. It’s verified and records are maintained by using cryptography to prevent counterfeiting and fraudulent transactions.
Social Token
This is a type of cryptocurrency that is based around a brand, community, or influencer.
Minting an NFT
Mining an NFT is how the art becomes a part of the Ethereum blockchain. Similar to how physical coins are minted and added into circulation, NFTs are also tokens that get minted.
Metaverse
The virtual and digital world where different things, such as land and avatars, can be bought and sold, oftentimes with cryptocurrency. In this world, people can move around and meet up with friends, buy goods, and attend events.
Editor’s Note: Jack Settleman appears on The Game Day programming.
