PUNE: The Indian Boxing Council (IBC) in collaboration with web3 startup TIAR will be launching a professional pro boxing league, which they claim is "for the people, by the people and of the people".
The Hellsbay Fight League (HFL) is planned to be held outside India in August, and will run on a "unique concept of people's ownership".
TIAR is a web3 startup based in India which aims to bring innovation in the art, sports and entertainment industry in India through blockchain.
The Hellsbay Fight League will be available to watch through pay-per-view and offer a big purse to its boxers in every fight.
Though it will be managed and governed by TIAR and IBC, each team in the league will be jointly owned and collectively managed by 1500 people, who invest in the league.
In a first-of-its-kind initiative, TIAR and IBC will sell shares of the six franchises to people who will invest in the NFTs (Non-Fungible Tokens) through TIAR.
A non-fungible token (NFT) is a non-interchangeable unit of data stored on a blockchain, a form of digital ledger, that can be sold and traded.
Types of NFT data units may be associated with digital files such as photos, videos, and audio.
In January, TIAR and IBC had announced the launch of their NFTs, which would include artwork, players profiles and key moments of Indian professional boxing.
Each team owner will get access to the voting platform of the league, which will allow them to select the players for their team from the pool of boxers, manage their training as well as decide on the fight card.
On the other hand, all boxers registered under IBC, which is the governing body for professional boxing in India, will be eligible to be part of the boxers' pool.
"It is a big step, and a unique one, towards our aim of taking professional boxing to the doors of every Indian household. With this league, pro boxing lovers will not only get a tournament to watch but will also get to own a team," said IBC President, Brigadier PKM Raja (Retd).
"We will announce details like total number of players in the league, number of fights and the venue soon."