Blockchain in Sports: A Comparative Analysis of Applications and Perceptions in Football and Basketball

Blockchain technology is reshaping the sports industry by enhancing transparency, data security, and fan engagement through applications such as smart contracts, tokenized sponsorships, and decentralized ticketing. This study investigates blockchain adoption in Romanian team sports, specifically foo...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Rocsana Bucea-Manea-Țoniș, Andrei Gabriel Antonescu, Constanța Mihăilă
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2025-06-01
Series:Applied Sciences
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3417/15/12/6829
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
_version_ 1850156481487306752
author Rocsana Bucea-Manea-Țoniș
Andrei Gabriel Antonescu
Constanța Mihăilă
author_facet Rocsana Bucea-Manea-Țoniș
Andrei Gabriel Antonescu
Constanța Mihăilă
author_sort Rocsana Bucea-Manea-Țoniș
collection DOAJ
description Blockchain technology is reshaping the sports industry by enhancing transparency, data security, and fan engagement through applications such as smart contracts, tokenized sponsorships, and decentralized ticketing. This study investigates blockchain adoption in Romanian team sports, specifically football and basketball, through a comparative analysis based on a survey of 293 sports professionals (213 from football and 80 from basketball). Using structural equation modeling (SEM) with SmartPLS and cluster analysis in SPSS, the study explores the perceived benefits of blockchain and its relationship with athlete performance. The findings reveal distinct adoption patterns: football shows higher use of blockchain in ticketing and fan engagement, while basketball leads in performance analytics and financial support mechanisms. Statistically significant differences were confirmed through MANOVA, and clustering revealed varied stakeholder perceptions across professional roles. Benchmarking against sectors like finance and healthcare highlights transferable best practices for blockchain integration in sports.
format Article
id doaj-art-704d461dfe1943d183b9aed4ec6624c0
institution OA Journals
issn 2076-3417
language English
publishDate 2025-06-01
publisher MDPI AG
record_format Article
series Applied Sciences
spelling doaj-art-704d461dfe1943d183b9aed4ec6624c02025-08-20T02:24:31ZengMDPI AGApplied Sciences2076-34172025-06-011512682910.3390/app15126829Blockchain in Sports: A Comparative Analysis of Applications and Perceptions in Football and BasketballRocsana Bucea-Manea-Țoniș0Andrei Gabriel Antonescu1Constanța Mihăilă2Department of Sport and Motor Performance, National University of Physical Education and Sports, 060057 Bucharest, RomaniaDepartment of Sport and Motor Performance, National University of Physical Education and Sports, 060057 Bucharest, RomaniaDepartment of Sport and Motor Performance, National University of Physical Education and Sports, 060057 Bucharest, RomaniaBlockchain technology is reshaping the sports industry by enhancing transparency, data security, and fan engagement through applications such as smart contracts, tokenized sponsorships, and decentralized ticketing. This study investigates blockchain adoption in Romanian team sports, specifically football and basketball, through a comparative analysis based on a survey of 293 sports professionals (213 from football and 80 from basketball). Using structural equation modeling (SEM) with SmartPLS and cluster analysis in SPSS, the study explores the perceived benefits of blockchain and its relationship with athlete performance. The findings reveal distinct adoption patterns: football shows higher use of blockchain in ticketing and fan engagement, while basketball leads in performance analytics and financial support mechanisms. Statistically significant differences were confirmed through MANOVA, and clustering revealed varied stakeholder perceptions across professional roles. Benchmarking against sectors like finance and healthcare highlights transferable best practices for blockchain integration in sports.https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3417/15/12/6829blockchainsports technologyteam performancesmart contractsfan engagementSEM
spellingShingle Rocsana Bucea-Manea-Țoniș
Andrei Gabriel Antonescu
Constanța Mihăilă
Blockchain in Sports: A Comparative Analysis of Applications and Perceptions in Football and Basketball
Applied Sciences
blockchain
sports technology
team performance
smart contracts
fan engagement
SEM
title Blockchain in Sports: A Comparative Analysis of Applications and Perceptions in Football and Basketball
title_full Blockchain in Sports: A Comparative Analysis of Applications and Perceptions in Football and Basketball
title_fullStr Blockchain in Sports: A Comparative Analysis of Applications and Perceptions in Football and Basketball
title_full_unstemmed Blockchain in Sports: A Comparative Analysis of Applications and Perceptions in Football and Basketball
title_short Blockchain in Sports: A Comparative Analysis of Applications and Perceptions in Football and Basketball
title_sort blockchain in sports a comparative analysis of applications and perceptions in football and basketball
topic blockchain
sports technology
team performance
smart contracts
fan engagement
SEM
url https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3417/15/12/6829
work_keys_str_mv AT rocsanabuceamaneatonis blockchaininsportsacomparativeanalysisofapplicationsandperceptionsinfootballandbasketball
AT andreigabrielantonescu blockchaininsportsacomparativeanalysisofapplicationsandperceptionsinfootballandbasketball
AT constantamihaila blockchaininsportsacomparativeanalysisofapplicationsandperceptionsinfootballandbasketball