Conor Daly

Conor Daly’s Digital Insider Pass: [Onboarding Sports Fans to Web3 at Full Speed]

Key Points

🏁 500+
– Digital Insider Pass NFTs minted during the Indy500
👥 Fan-first Web3 experience
– No crypto knowledge required to participate
🗳️ Powered by OpenGov
– First motorsport sponsorship approved via Polkadot’s decentralized governance
🌐 Built on Polkadot
– Showcasing seamless interoperability and community-driven innovation
🎟️ Real-world rewards
– Exclusive access and fan engagement via blockchain

Challenge

Mainstream fan engagement was stuck in Web2.

Traditional sports promotions offered little more than passive experiences—basic merch, social content, and one-way communication. Bringing Web3 benefits like ownership, exclusivity, and active participation to non-crypto-native fans was a major challenge. Most fans lacked wallets, tokens, or the technical knowledge to engage with blockchain.

Could motorsports fans be the next wave of Web3 adopters?

Solution

During the Indianapolis 500 and Consensus 2024, Athelo Group and Unique Network launched the Conor Daly Digital Insider Pass—an NFT-based digital fan club experience.

It was more than just a collectible—it gave real-world perks, exclusive access, and a sense of belonging. And it all happened on Polkadot, using OpenGov, where the community voted to sponsor Conor Daly—making it the first motorsport sponsorship approved by decentralized governance.

Key pillars of the solution:

✅ No crypto wallet needed for initial access
✅ NFTs that unlocked real-world fan experiences
✅ Community-approved sponsorship via OpenGov
✅ Integration with major events like Indy500 and Consensus
✅ Fast, scalable minting on Polkadot

Impact

This project proved that blockchain fan engagement can be frictionless, fun, and impactful.

Since launch:

📈 500+ NFTs minted by unique users during the race event
🎉 Fans enjoyed real-world rewards like behind-the-scenes access
🔓 Onboarding was seamless—non-crypto natives didn’t feel lost
🛠️ Validated Polkadot’s ability to support real-world, fan-facing applications
🌍 Set the stage for future sports + blockchain collaborations

By combining easy onboarding, meaningful rewards, and community-driven funding, the Digital Insider Pass bridged Web3 and real-world fandom—at full throttle.

Sources

“We’re bringing power back to the people while making sports history.” — Conor Daly