NEW DELHI: SportZchain, which lays claim to being India’s first and only blockchain-based fan engagement platform, has onboarded Baljit Rihal as head of Football Partnerships (India).
Baljit will also be working closely with the advisory board to ensure the partnerships and fan engagement run smoothly. After securing pre-seed funding of $400,000 in October, SportZchain has been working towards adding more fan-focused teams in their portfolio and creating a blockchain-based application to heighten the existing infrastructure.
Rihal is the CEO of Inventive Sports, a global consultancy specialising in emerging sports markets. He is a passionate sports entrepreneur with an influential industry presence built over 10 years across UK, Europe and India. He founded the Asian Football Awards in 2013 supported by the Football Association and subsequently the Asian Cricket Awards, which held its inaugural event at Lords in 2014. He is also a well-known football agent, having licenses with the English FA and All India Football Federation alongside his accreditation with the England and Wales Cricket Board. Inventive Sports currently manage a number of Indian and international clients competing in the Indian Super League as well as emerging cricket talent globally.
Incepted in March 2021, SportZchain is a Singapore-based startup founded by Siddharth Jaiswal, a Mumbai-based entrepreneur. The foundation of the platform was laid with a strong belief that sports enthusiasts and fans rightfully deserve a right to be heard by their favoured sports teams. The platform offers fans a chance to help make their favourite teams the right decisions through voting powers while simultaneously reaping some financial benefits by purchasing branded sports tokens.
Supported by a team consisting of industry experts such as Ajeet Khurana (Ex-CXO of Zebpay and head of Blockchain & Crypto Committee, India), Suhail Chandok (Star Sports TV presenter, analyst & commentator – IPL, ICC Cricket, World Cups, Pro Kabaddi, Wimbledon, etc.) and Oksana Belousova (CEO of Fenix Technology), SportZchain aims to create a tangible bridge between sports fans and the their favourite teams.
