DraftKings Settles Lawsuit With NFLPA Over Use of Player Likenesses in NFTs

The settlement comes just weeks before the NFL's Super Bowl on Feb. 9 in New Orleans.

U.S. sports betting platform DraftKings has settled a lawsuit with the National Football League Players Association (NFLPA) over the use of NFL players’ likenesses in non-fungible tokens (NFTs).

In a joint letter filed with New York federal Judge Analisa Torres on Friday, the parties said they had mediated the case and reached an agreement to settle. They asked the judge to pause the case for 60 days, giving them until March 28 to finalize the settlement.

The details of the settlement were not disclosed.

Both parties had filed motions for summary judgment in the case, with DraftKings arguing that the court should dismiss the NFLPA’s claims and the union arguing that the court should rule in its favor on several counts, including breach of contract andسجيل الدخول غير المصرح به.

What Happened?

DraftKings had partnered with the NFLPA in 2021 to launch a series of collectible NFTs featuring NFL players. The NFTs were part of a fantasy sports game called Reignmakers, where users could trade the player NFTs.

However, DraftKings shut down its NFT marketplace in July 2023. The company also stopped making payments to the NFLPA, arguing that it had the right to terminate the contract.

This decision came after a federal court ruled that the NFTs were securities under the Securities Act and Exchange Act.

The NFLPA then filed a lawsuit in August 2023, reportedly seeking $65 million in damages. The final damages amount requested were redacted in court documents.

The union also alleged in the lawsuit that DraftKings had threatened to stop offering the NFTs in 2023, but the parties later agreed to continue.

DraftKings NFT Case Settles Ahead of Super Bowl

The settlement comes just several weeks before the NFL’s Super Bowl, which is set to take place in New Orleans on Feb. 9.

In previous years, the Super Bowl has featured advertisements from cryptocurrency companies, such as Coinbase, Crypto.com and FTX. But last year’s event saw no crypto-related ads following the collapse of FTX in November 2022.

In September 2024, Major League Baseball Players, Inc. (MLBPI) — the licensing arm of the MLB Players Union — also filed a lawsuit against DraftKings and bet365 in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.

MLBPI accused the platforms of violating players’ publicity rights by using their names, images and likenesses without consent.

The NFT Market Today

NFT sales grew by 2.3% in 2024, reaching $8.9 billion. As of today, the global NFT market cap is valued at $6.3 billion, reflecting a 0.5% increase in the last 24 hours.

This is still much lower than the record $23.7 billion in NFT sales witnessed in 2022. Moreover, the total trading volume in the NFT space over the past day was $22.1 million, showing a 33.3% spike.

Judge Torres, who is also overseeing other high-profile crypto cases, including the SEC’s lawsuit against Ripple, will have to approve the final settlement agreement between DraftKings and the NFLPA.