Nike’s Swoosh Hosts Virtual Sneaker Design Contest

Credit: Nike

Nike’s latest move in Web3 should be exciting for creative digital designers. The #YourForce1 contests will let members design a virtual sneaker and build a storyboard, which Nike will judge when the contest concludes on January 29th.

Four winners will be chosen to receive $5,000 each, and perhaps more exciting than the money, they will have a chance to work directly with Nike designers to design a 1:1 digital shoe.

The design contest is aimed at rewarding creators and expanding Nike’s .SWOOSH community, which launched in November 2022. .SWOOSH (pronounced Dot Swoosh) is a Web3 community and NFT marketplace where users can trade digital and phygital products. It’s also a place to discuss, display, and design virtual NFT sneakers and other wearables.

When .SWOOSH launched, Nike said part of the platform’s mission was to allow creators to co-create products with Nike. This contest looks to be the first step towards achieving that goal. However, you must be a part of Nike’s community to participate, as the contest is only open to registered .SWOOSH users.

The #YourForce1 contest is also part of Nike’s plan to hype its first NFT sneaker collection, which is expected to drop later this year. Nike said that it was possible the winning designs could be used in the collection.

Nike also added that it wants to “expand the definition of what a creator can be,” and that the contest would rank storytelling above creative design skills.

Nike Continues to Be a Leader in Web3

It should come as no surprise that Nike is back in Web3 news. The brand has been an innovator in the space for some time now. In fact, about six months ago, Nike was leading all fashion brands in revenue generated from NFTs, with a whopping $185 million. At Rarity Sniper, we’ve covered several articles about Nike’s innovations in Web3. Here are the two top stories.

First, six months ago, Nike opened a new type of store in one of the most popular neighborhoods in Seoul, South Korea. The Nike “Style” store will explore the digital and physical spaces through QR codes that lead to in-store AR experiences, and a content studio where shoppers can create their own videos.


Next, about a month ago, Nike and its NFT incubation studio RTFKT teamed up with Division Street to drop an augmented reality (AR) helmet NFT collection. The collection features 291 digital wearable helmets linked to physical jerseys of Oregon University’s football team. The AR helmet NFTs will let Oregon’s athletes commercialize their Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL).

As the crypto and NFT markets start to emerge from last year’s bear cycle, Nike is well-positioned to continue being a major player in the space. We’ll be following up on the #YourForce1 contest to see what sort of cool digital footwear Nike .SWOOSH member’s create.