Tournament organizers ESL are set to launch NFTs — non-fungible tokens that verify ownership of assets on the blockchain — based on their ESL Pro Tour CS:GO circuit.
ESL are betting big on cryptocurrency as a means of increasing fan engagement in Counter-Strike, striking up a partnership with Immutable to launch their own NFT platform.
The tournament organizer’s new partner will provide them with the infrastructure necessary to build and launch their own platform for collectibles including “some of the most memorable moments” in the tour’s history.
It’s not clear at this stage exactly what the NFTs will consist of, however. The announcement instead focused on highlighting that their crypto efforts will be carbon neutral and include gas-free trading.
ESL’s platform will allow CS:GO fans to buy, sell, and trade NFTs relating to the ESL Pro Tour, though no launch date has been mentioned at the time of publication.
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ESL recently welcomed more CS:GO teams as stakeholders in the Louvre Agreement, meaning they will become partnered teams in the ESL Pro League. As part of a stated $20m deal, BIG, Heroic, and FURIA all invested to strengthen their positioning in the Pro Tour.
“The Immutable team has gaming in their DNA and we share the same vision for the future of NFTs,” said ESL’s SVP of global business development, Bernhard Mogk. “In combination with a deep passion for the community, this is the only way to forge meaningful innovation in the space.
“We could not be more excited to launch on Immutable X, the best possible community driven and fan centric collectible platform to buy, collect and own some of the most memorable moments in EPT history.”
