Will Bitcoin Ever Make It To The Olympics?

The 2016 Rio Olympics present a compelling platform to promote Bitcoin in Brazil, as well as on an international scale. Even though most people would look no further than using Bitcoin for gambling purposes, there are plenty of opportunities waiting to be explored. The Olympics will leave a financial crater behind once the event is over, that much is certain.  

Discovering New Potential Future Use Cases For Bitcoin

Looking over the Rio Olympics, there are plenty of things that need to be improved. For those who are successful in winning a medal, for example, the monetary gain is far less significant than most people assume. Every Olympic medal winner will have to pay [a large amount of] taxes for being so successful. This is not different from other sports by any means, but it is something that most people tend to overlook.

One possible solution – albeit it would probably never be implemented – is to use Bitcoin to handle all of these payouts. With its global appeal and complete transparency, both the IOC and athletes would have a public record of the payment being made for the predetermined amount. Since everyone knows who won which medal, there would be no need to worry about making this information publicly available either.

At the same time, following this train of thought would lead to revised taxation rules for Bitcoin all over the world. Right now, Bitcoin is taxed in a handful of countries, whereas most other regions do not officially acknowledge it as a currency. Even though taxation is theft in the highest degree, it also brings more “mainstream validity” to cryptocurrency.

But there is another purpose for using Bitcoin during the Olympics. Right now, attendees rely on payment cards and cash to pay for goods and services during the event. Bitcoin would resolve those issues as well, as it creates a more secure solution where the user controls their funds. Moreover, users would only need their mobile device to make and receive payments.

In the end, the Olympics are all about bringing the world together. Payment methods and financial services will need to follow suit in this regard, yet the solutions are limited. We can only dream of seeing Bitcoin involved in future Olympics at some point. But for now, that dream is far ahead of its time.

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