Sorare is migrating its fantasy sports platform from Ethereum’s StarkEx layer to Solana

Fantasy sports and digital collectibles platform Sorare has announced a migration of its operation from Ethereum’s StarkEx layer to Solana. The Softbank-backed platform rationalized the move based on Solana’s speed, low transaction fees, and composability.

Along with its SoftBank backing, Sorare also claims partnerships with global leagues like the Premier League and NBA. It clarified that the transition will start in early October, as the platform looks to make the most of its intersection of mainstream sports fandom and crypto infrastructure. 

Sorare tethers move to openness and scalability taglines

In a recent post, Sorare stated that the migration is “more than a technical upgrade,” framing it as a long-term strategy to connect its player cards to the growing crypto economy. 

“We believe in true digital ownership that extends beyond our own marketplace,” the company wrote. It also said by moving to Solana, it is connecting the Sorare cards of their users to a broader ecosystem. 

According to Sorare, this means that users will get expanded capabilities and utility on Solana, increased connectedness to the heart of crypto, access to external marketplaces, and expanded payment options including ETH, SOL, and other payment options, and all these are promised to happen in the short term. 

The migration will enable Sorare users to trade, verify, and store their cards directly through popular Solana-compatible wallets such as Phantom and Backpack.

Migration timeline and user impact

The transition is scheduled to happen in phases throughout October, and the first item on the list is the migration of Sorare’s Ethereum balances on StarkEx to Base to improve efficiency while still maintaining Ethereum compatibility. 

By the end of the month, all Sorare cards are expected to be bridged to Solana as NFTs while still maintaining their unique attributes, such as scarcity, season, experience points (XP), and metadata.

Existing gameplay, collections, and ownership will remain intact. However, those who prefer to keep their assets outside the new environment can withdraw them to the Ethereum mainnet before migration. However, any cards moved externally would need to be bridged back to Solana for continued trading on Sorare’s marketplace.

Sorare’s move also enhances the platform’s payment and reward flexibility, with both ETH and SOL now supported across its marketplace and tournaments.

Implications for Solana and Sorare’s plans for the future

For Solana, the integration marks another high-profile validation of its technical infrastructure and growing role in the next generation of blockchain applications beyond the NFT art and DeFi circles, as it now extends into mainstream entertainment and sports. 

The migration of Sorare’s platform could also open doors to future collaborations between Solana-based gaming projects and major sports franchises.

At the same time, Sorare mentioned that it is exploring every opportunity in front of it, from community partnerships, new forms of gameplay and the possible expansion of its ecosystem via a Sorare token, stating that it is building a future where everything is on the table, thanks to the migration.

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