First Preseason Access Collection Will Feature NFTs From Tom Brady, Wayne Gretzky, Tony Hawk, Naomi Osaka, Derek Jeter and Tiger Woods

BOSTON, Aug. 10, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- DraftKings Marketplace, the NFT ecosystem designed by DraftKings (Nasdaq: DKNG) for mainstream accessibility, is now live and will feature its first Preseason Access Collection that drops later this week. The exclusive debut content will be provided by Autograph, and includes Preseason Access Passes from top athletes such as Tom Brady, Wayne Gretzky, Tony Hawk, Naomi Osaka, Derek Jeter, Tiger Woods and more who will soon be announced. These sports-related NFTs will be available exclusively on Autograph.io and on DraftKings Marketplace. Customers nationally can join the first drops starting on August 11^th, which will feature Tom Brady.

"Autograph’s Advisory Board includes some of the most iconic athletes ever, and we could not imagine a more fitting figure than Tom Brady to headline our first ever NFT drop on DraftKings Marketplace,” said Matt Kalish, co-founder and president of DraftKings. “The overall NFT market has already surged to over $2.5 billion in sales volume for the first half of 2021, and so whether someone is well-versed or barely familiar with digital collectibles, we envision DraftKings Marketplace being a premier platform for all within a trend that is decidedly here to stay.”

With this launch, fans and collectors across the country with a DraftKings account can now access DraftKings Marketplace on desktop or mobile either directly through the website or via DraftKings’ apps. Each featured athlete will begin by dropping a limited number of NFT collectibles categorized as the Premier drops and Signature drops within the Preseason Access Collection. These NFTs will be available for USD purchase at a range of prices with the goal of lowering the barriers to entry for fans who want to begin collecting NFTs while still appealing to seasoned collectors. Premier editions of Tom Brady NFTs will drop throughout the day on August 11^th followed by Signature editions set to drop during August 13^th that will contain authentic digital signatures from the seven-time Super Bowl champion. Following the Tom Brady drop, Wayne Gretzky will be the next athlete showcased within the Preseason Access Collection on DraftKings Marketplace.

Each owner of a Preseason Access Pass, regardless of edition, will also be granted preferential access to a future drop from Autograph. While the supply of inaugural Tom Brady NFTs on DraftKings Marketplace is limited, fans will have opportunities to acquire certified authentic content of other prominent athletes and collections yet to be released. The launch and ongoing development of DraftKings Marketplace includes leveraging the expertise of Scarcity Labs, which was recently acquired by DraftKings to support expansion into NFTs and related technologies. DraftKings has also hired Beth Beiriger, former chief product officer at Invaluable, to join the team as senior vice president of operations for DraftKings Marketplace where she will oversee content strategy and the long-term roadmap.

“NFTs bring an entirely new dimension to the collector experience, and I cannot wait for people to discover and engage with this first ever drop of Autograph’s official digital collectibles,” said Tom Brady, co-founder of Autograph. “We created Autograph as a way for fans and collectors to own a piece of iconic moments in sports and entertainment through authenticated and official digital collectibles and we are just getting started!”

All DraftKings Marketplace NFTs are minted on an eco-friendly Ethereum Layer 2 solution for customers to then store within their DraftKings Marketplace portfolio. Customers can view NFTs they have purchased on DraftKings Marketplace within the portfolio feature and will eventually have the ability to transfer these NFTs to their own wallets on Ethereum Mainnet. Collectors will also be able to view their collections on Autograph’s platform. Additionally, NFT owners can leverage the secondary-sale market on DraftKings Marketplace by listing their digital collectibles for sale at their chosen price for others to see within the community. Customers can expect new NFT drops on DraftKings Marketplace as the digital collectibles hub continues to grow with exclusive content.

About DraftKings
DraftKings Inc. is a digital sports entertainment and gaming company created to fuel the competitive spirit of sports fans with products that range across daily fantasy, regulated gaming and digital media. Headquartered in Boston, and launched in 2012 by Jason Robins, Matt Kalish and Paul Liberman, DraftKings is the only U.S.-based vertically integrated sports betting operator. DraftKings is a multi-channel provider of sports betting and gaming technologies, powering sports and gaming entertainment for operators in 17 countries. DraftKings’ Sportsbook is live with mobile and/or retail betting operations in the United States pursuant to regulations in Colorado, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Mississippi, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Virginia and West Virginia. DraftKings’ daily fantasy sports product is available in 7 countries internationally with 15 distinct sports categories. DraftKings is the official daily fantasy partner of the NFL, MLB, NASCAR, PGA TOUR and UFC as well as an authorized gaming operator of the NBA and MLB, an official sports betting partner of the NFL, an official betting operator of PGA TOUR and the official betting operator of UFC. Launched in August 2021, DraftKings Marketplace is a digital collectibles ecosystem designed for mainstream accessibility that offers curated NFT drops and supports secondary-market transactions. DraftKings also owns Vegas Sports Information Network, Inc. (VSiN), a multi-platform broadcast and content company.

Forward-Looking Statements
Certain statements made in this release are “forward looking statements” within the meaning of the “safe harbor” provisions of the United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. When used in this press release, the words “estimates,” “projected,” “expects,” “anticipates,” “forecasts,” “plans,” “intends,” “believes,” “seeks,” “may,” “will,” “should,” “future,” “propose” and variations of these words or similar expressions (or the negative versions of such words or expressions) are intended to identify forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance, conditions or results, and involve a number of known and unknown risks, uncertainties, assumptions and other important factors, many of which are outside DraftKings’ control, that could cause actual results or outcomes to differ materially from those discussed in the forward-looking statements. For a discussion of additional risks and uncertainties, which could cause actual results to differ from those contained in the forward-looking statements, see DraftKings’ Securities and Exchange Commission filings. DraftKings does not undertake any obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by law.

About Autograph
Autograph is an NFT platform that brings together the most iconic brands and legendary names in sports, entertainment and culture to create unique digital collections and experiences for users around the world. Co-founded by Tom Brady and headquartered in Los Angeles, Autograph is ushering in a new era of collecting through a streamlined and inclusive process, authentic and creative products and exclusive partnerships

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