The crypto sphere continues to nudge its way into mainstream adoption. this time it’s coming in the form of a major racing partnership. McLaren announced in early June a new partnership with Tezos, becoming yet another big name to enter the NFT world.
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The partnership aims to launch an NFT platform designed to improve the overall fan experience. The partnership will combine McLaren’s racing heritage and its popular driver line-ups across the Formula 1 and Arrow McLaren SP teams. Lindsey Eckhouse, Director of Licensing, Ecommerce, and Esports at McLaren Racing noted the partnership “is an innovative step in an exciting and rapidly developing industry.” The Tezos brand will also be featured on the suits of Formula 1 drivers Lando Norris (left) and Daniel Riccardo (right) as well as Pato O’Ward and Fliex Rosenqvist (AMSP).
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Credit McLaren Racing 
Credit McLaren Racing
The partnership goes further as Tezos will be a sponsoring partner for the McLaren esports team. Now this isn’t McLaren’s first venture into the crypto sphere. In March 2021, McLaren announced it would be creating an official fan token through a partnership with Bitci.com, a Turkish crypto firm. This has proven to be very profitable and marketable as soccer giant FC Barcelona recently saw over $1.3M worth of fan tokens scooped up less than 2 hours after the sale started.
What’s an NFT?
Non-fungible tokens (NFT), have been growing in popularity over the last year. Everyone from athletes to popular artists are seeking to capitalize. They are digital assets that carry a unique digital signature meaning no two are the same. digital video clips or sound bites could be duplicated but the digital signature is what gives it the claim of originality thus giving the asset its worth. A fungible asset on the other hand is similar to a currency, like the dollar, where the same asset can exist many times over.
About Tezos
Tezos is a crypto project that positions itself as an open-source blockchain that is energy-friendly. They note using “two million times less energy than other cryptos like Bitcoin and Ethereum”. Tezos positions itself as a currency first and foremost and a smart contract platform second. Tezos offers a platform for creating decentralized applications that cannot be censored or taken offline by any third party.
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Going forward you should expect to see more of these partnerships as mainstream organizations continue to adopt crypto projects. Formula 1 recently announced a $100M dollar partnership with Crypto.com to have the crypto platform become a global partner. By now, you’ve heard of the growing success of NBA Top Shot in the NFT marketplace. Organizations like the San Jose Sharks (NHL) and Dallas Mavericks (NBA) announced acceptance of digital currencies for tickets and merchandise. As adoption takes place, it appears crypto projects like Tezos will bridge the gap between you and your favourite team.
