Photo Credit: Cricket Australia
Cricket Australia (CA) has announced the next stage of its partnership with NFT (non-fungible token) provider Rario, with the first Australian cricket NFTs to be available on the CricRush platform.
CricRush will be launched on October 12, and fans can start building their team when the first packs drop on October 14.
Pack drops across the season will contain a selection of cards featuring Australian men’s and women’s players, as well as the stars of the Big Bash Leagues, giving fans their first chance to obtain a bronze, silver, gold or black card, with each tier relating to the scarcity and likely value of that card.
Fans can start building their team with packs or buy and sell with other fans on the marketplace, allowing them to guarantee they get their favourite player.
Rario is the creator of the world’s first cricket NFT platform, along with joint venture partner BlockTrust. The official licensing deal with CA and the Australian Cricketers’ Association (ACA) will make NFTs from Australian cricket accessible to millions of fans globally.
CricRush is designed to increase fans love of the game. This was the inspiration for the strategy game D3.Club where fans can select three players who they think will perform best in upcoming matches and pit them against fellow fans around Australia and the world to see who comes out on top.
CricRush holders will also be able to gain access to events, cricket memorabilia and money can’t buy experiences throughout the summer.
Nick Hockley, CA Chief Executive said:
“We are really excited that our partnership with Rario and BlockTrust has gone to the next stage and the CricRush platform will give fans the chance to get their first access to Australian cricket NFTs,” Hockley said.
“The CricRush platform is designed not only to provide a safe and user-friendly marketplace for NFTs, but also to create genuine excitement around the players and the game itself.
“NFTs will be yet another way in which the traditional experiences of playing and watching cricket is enhanced with new technology.
“We are also delighted our NFT partnership with the ACA will provide fantastic mutual benefits for the players and the game.”
Todd Greenberg, ACA Chief Executive said:
“This is an exciting opportunity for our players and more broadly for Australian cricket. This is reflected in the cooperative spirit that the ACA and Cricket Australia have partnered with Rario to bring the innovative CricRush platform to life,” Greenberg said.
“The CricRush platform provides another way of bringing fans and our players together, and once you get into the platform you soon understand the engagement possibilities between players and fans are huge.”
Mike Alexander, BlockTrust Co-founder said:
“The launch of the CricRush platform is the first step in an amazing partnership between BlockTrust, Cricket Australia, ACA and Rario – one that will set the standard for fan engagement across the world,” Alexander said.
“Everything is being built with cricket lovers in mind. It’s not about creating the next NFT collection, it’s about leveraging Web3 technology to ignite passion and allow fans to get closer to the game they love than ever before.
“This is just the start of an exciting long-term vision. One that creates value for fans, and for cricket in Australia.”
About Rario – World’s first Officially Licensed Cricket NFT Platform
Founded in 2021 by IIT Alumni Ankit Wadhwa and Sunny Bhanot as the world’s first officially licensed digital collectibles platform for cricket fans to collect and trade cricket NFTs.
Rario has exclusive partnerships with Cricket Australia, New Zealand Cricket, Big Bash League, Women’s Big Bash League, Super Smash, Hero Caribbean Premier League, Lanka Premier League, Abu Dhabi T10 League, Legends League Cricket, and has a roster of over 900 international cricketers as well as over 30 exclusive brand ambassadors.
Having Polygon Studios, and Animoca as partners, Rario is based out of Singapore and is also backed by reputed investors such as Kingsway Capital, Presight Capital, and Dream Capital. Since 2021, Rario has sold over 50,000 NFTs to sports fans across 75+ countries.
About BLOCKTRUST
BlockTrust was established in 2020 by Blockchain expert Michael Alexander and IT entrepreneur Michael Haywood. Alexander is the former CEO of EOS Venture Capital, a leading blockchain investor and prior to that CEO of Jeffries Bank in Asia Pacific. Dr Haywood has developed technology platforms for a range of industries and is also a founder of the globally awarded LiveHire talent acquisition platform.
BlockTrust’s NFT marketplace design and development services are being used by a number of organisations and associations globally. This includes national sporting associations, e-gaming, museum collections, entertainment conglomerates and high-profile celebrities with large fan basis.
