Bored Apes and blockchains: Why NFTs give us a glimpse into football's future

MANCHESTER: Football stars have a new play thing. From Brazil's Neymar to Liverpool's Andrew Robertson many have got involved in NFTs, with these crypto assets giving us a glimpse into the sport's ever-changing future.

You may have noticed Neymar or England defender Reece James change their social media profile picture recently to what appears to be a funky digital artwork of a monkey - part of the Bored Ape Yacht Club collection of NFTs.

Shorthand for "non-fungible tokens", NFTs are digital assets, possibly linked to an image, video or sound clip. While ownership of the originals is insured on a blockchain - the technology behind NFTs - many people are baffled why so much is spent on items which do not physically exist and are free to view online.

"Footballers are prime targets for these things," one agent who works with English Premier League players told Reuters.

"It is a status thing - going into training to say they own something. Like a watch that sits on the side they never wear."

Some owners of NFTs also hope to benefit from rising prices, giving them an incentive to promote their assets.

"These apes were selling for 180 dollars last year," Tim Mangnall, CEO of UK-based Capital Block, an NFT agency focused on football, told Reuters. "Now most sell for between $750,000 and $2 million. It's a very exclusive club.

"I'm a Bored Ape Yacht Club fan, but I think we are definitely in a bubble around NFTs and art."

The reaction has been mixed to say the least, with Robertson and fellow Liverpool defender Trent Alexander-Arnold forced to turn off their Twitter replies to their "collection" launch such was the volume of angry responses.

NFTs' links to cryptocurrency and the mystery around the new craze were the main areas of