NFL’s Miami Dolphins Now Accepting Litecoin

The deal means that football fans participating in the 50/50 raffle both in Hard Rock Stadium and online will be able to use Litecoin to enter the draw. The ability to do just that is now a reality thanks to a traditional third-party payment provider known as Aliant Payments.

Since beginning to accept the Litecoin payments in October, initial figures show that 46 Litecoin transactions are on the blockchain and accounted for as being included in the raffle. Although that number of transactions isn’t going to single handedly create an avalanche of new cryptocurrency adopters and Litecoin enthusiasts, the Dolphins are reporting that since accepting Litecoin, the average amount raised in the weekly raffle has increased from $72,000 per game to $86,000 per game.

Considering the team playing on the field finished with one of the worst records of the 2019 NFL regular season (and by extension one of the worst attendance records of the year among the league’s 32 teams), seeing a nearly 20% jump in the value of raffle ticket purchases makes the partnership between Aliant Payments and the Miami Dolphins a worthwhile endeavor financially. The fact that the adoption of cryptocurrencies not named bitcoin is continuing to move into the mainstream consciousness with these partnerships is an added bonus.

Branding Litecoin

The fact the Miami Dolphins have been one of the most underachieving teams in the NFL for most of the last decade should be no sweat off the brow of Litecoin users and cryptocurrency fans alike. Any partnership within a North American sports league, particularly one as popular as the NFL will work wonders for branding cryptocurrencies and increasing adoption in the long run.

Part of aligning with the Dolphins means that Litecoin can be called the official cryptocurrency of the Miami Dolphins. It also means there will be in-game branding and advertising opportunities made available to the project throughout Hard Rock Stadium and throughout content created surrounding the stadium and the football team. Though it will be hard to pinpoint the exact long-term financial value of such an opportunity, it’s safe to say the future is bright for Litecoin.

Litecoin’s First Sports Sponsorship Rodeo

The Litecoin Foundation’s deal with Aliant and the Miami Dolphins isn’t the cryptocurrency’s first foray into major sports. That honor actually belongs to the UFC. The Litecoin logo was prominently displayed inside the octagon during a pay-per-view event featuring one of the UFC’s most popular fighters, Jon Jones fighting Alexander Gustafsson in December of 2018.

Of course, Litecoin’s foray into the realm of sports mimics Bitcoin’s in multiple ways, and with good reason. First of all, the target audience watching professional sports is young, male and typically between the ages of 18 to 35. It just so happens that the target audience most interested in cryptocurrencies is exactly the same. Think about it. Most blockchain developers and digital currency enthusiasts are male and between the ages of 18-35.

Even from a technical standpoint, the coding structure that makes up Litecoin is considered to be the “lighter”/faster version of Bitcoin’s coding, hence the name Litecoin.

Other Cryptocurrency Partnerships in Sports

The Miami Dolphins are the first team in the NFL to engage in a partnership with a cryptocurrency project, but they’re far from the first north american sports team to do it.

The NBA’s Sacramento Kings and Dallas Mavericks have already been accepting Bitcoin and using the blockchain for tickets, merchandise, and in-game promotions for several years.

Several teams in soccer’s English Premier League have also inked deals with specific cryptocurrencies and many of the league’s matches feature advertising from cryptocurrency-friendly bitcoin sports betting sites.

Bitcoin and Litecoin also aren’t the only cryptocurrency projects getting in on the mix. Dogecoin, a cryptocurrency that doesn’t provide a specific use case or purpose, has sponsored a NASCAR team in the past and also played a role in sending the Jamaican bobsled team to the 2014 Winter Olympics.

It’s safe to say that digital currencies will continue to get involved with sports as a way of accelerating adoption. It’s exciting news for crypto enthusiasts, sports fans and gamblers everywhere.