Tennis Australia’s NFTs plummet with the Artball program
SportsIn
January 14, 2025

Tennis Australia’s Artball program, launched in 2022 as an innovative foray into the world of tokens –NFTs-, has experienced a collapse in the value of its assets. Three years after its inception, the project appears to have been abandoned, leaving buyers with assets whose value has fallen by as much as 90%, British newspaper ‘The Guardian’ has reported.

The program allowed tennis fans to purchase 6,776 NFTs linked to specific plots of the Melbourne Park court during the Australian Open. In 2023, another 2,454 tokens were added. Initially, the prices of these NFTs ranged from 0.067ETH – about USD 278 in 2022 – to 0.230ETH – USD 446 in 2023. However, the current resale value on platforms such as OpenSea is notably lower, as relayed by ‘The Guardian’, with prices ranging from 0.003ETH to 0.017ETH.

NO NFTs BY 2024 AND NO TRACE IN 2025

Tennis Australia promoted the Artball program as an exclusive experience, likening it to a loyalty program. Buyers gained access to a Discord channel, finals passes and behind-the-scenes access opportunities. In addition, if the parcel associated with the NFT matched the match point on the court, owners could get tickets to the following year’s tournament.

In 2024, no new NFTs were launched, although existing owners were able to redeem passes for the final week of the tournament. However, in 2025, the program seems to have disappeared completely: no new editions or benefits have been announced, and the platforms associated with the project, including the Discord channel, are inactive, the English newspaper notes.

TENNIS AUSTRALIA’S DIGITAL STRATEGY

Despite the collapse of the Artball program, Tennis Australia has diversified its digital strategy towards other initiatives. These include interactive experiences such as match simulation with commentary in Roblox and a student challenge that recreates the Australian Open in Minecraft.

In addition, the tournament has implemented facial recognition technology to improve security at its facilities. However, this move has generated controversy, as Australia’s privacy commissioner ruled that similar practices had violated customer privacy in the past.

The jab at the Artball program reflects the risks to the adoption of emerging technologies such as NFTs, especially in a volatile market. While Tennis Australia has not offered comment on the abandonment of the project, its focus now appears to be on diversifying its digital presence beyond blockchain-based assets.

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