Syracuse Athletics expanding co-licensing program for student-athletes

SYRACUSE, N.Y. — Syracuse University Athletics has announced a multi-year partnership with Fantastec SWAP that will create non-fungible tokens (NFT), or digital collectibles, which feature a college athlete’s likeness and Syracuse marks and logos.

Fans around the globe can collect, swap, and sell the NFTs via the Fantastec SWAP app. The “Season Preview Collection” will debut on June 23 with additional utilities available throughout 2022-23, the school said.

Syracuse University sees the partnership as “continuing to build upon a co-licensing program to benefit every student-athlete who wears the Orange,” per the Monday announcement. The multi-year partnership with Fantastec SWAP is “the first in the NCAA,” Syracuse said.

“We are thrilled that our student-athletes will benefit from their likeness in conjunction with the Block S,” Syracuse University Director of Athletics John Wildhack said. “Fantastec SWAP is an industry leader in creativity and technical prowess. As the first NCAA program to collaborate with Fantastec SWAP, our student-athletes have another unique opportunity to expand their Name, Image and Likeness (NIL) portfolio and engage with our fans in a new and innovative way.”

SWAP produces NFTs at scale meaning any or all of the more than 600 Syracuse student-athletes signing up for the 2022-23 season can have their own NFTs as part of the official Syracuse sports collection.

Fantastec SWAP has produced NFTs for high-profile European soccer clubs including Arsenal, Borussia Dortmund, and Real Madrid since 2019, per the announcement.

Fantastec SWAP is available via app stores. Fantastec SWAP is built on the Flow blockchain, meaning Syracuse student-athletes will be part of the largest sports NFT ecosystem that also houses NBA Top Shot, the UFC, and NFL All Day, Syracuse said.