Crypto companies flock to sports, spending more than $2.4 billion in less than 18 months
In today's stagnant crypto market, the total volume of transactions for Opensea, once a dominant player in the crypto space, in August was the lowest-recorded month in 24-hour daily volume but crypto companies are eyeing price breakthroughs. Meanwhile, with the World Cup in Qatar approaching, the price of Fan Tokens has skyrocketed. According to CoinEx, a well-known crypto exchange, in the past 30 days, the price of LAZIO fan token has increased by 126.41%, SANTOS has increased by 178.88%, and PORTO has increased by 106%.
Apart from that, crypto companies have made many moves in the sports industry. According to Bloomberg, crypto companies have committed more than $2.4 billion to sports marketing in the past 18 months. Today, let's check out which crypto players have sponsored sports events or organizations in 2022.
Earlier this year, Binance signed a 5-year sponsorship agreement with the Argentine national football team, covering the development of a new fan token.
On February 10, Terra partnered with the Washington Nationals, an MLB team, in a sponsorship agreement.
On February 17, Bitget Exchange announced its sponsorship deal for Turkish football club Galatasaray.
On March 4, Manchester City Football Club announced a global partnership with OKX, calling it the club's official crypto exchange partner. On July 11, the two announced the extension of their current partnership.
On March 23, FIFA announced that Crypto.com, a cryptocurrency exchange platform, will become the official sponsor of the FIFA World Cup 2022 in Qatar.
On April 12, Bitget, a crypto derivatives exchange, announced its exclusive sponsorship with PGL CS: GO Major Championship 2022 and PGL Dota 2 Arlington Major 2022.
On April 14, Jerry Jones, the NFL general manager for the Dallas Cowboys, announced that Blockchain.com would be the team's sponsor at a press conference.
On May 3, Algorand announced its sponsorship and strategic partnership with FIFA. On the same day, OKX, a cryptocurrency exchange, entered into a multi-year partnership with McLaren Racing.
On May 9, Barcelona-based decentralized payment network Crypto Snack announced that it had signed a sponsorship deal with soccer club RCD Espanyol.
On May 10, Binance secured a partnership with Confederação Brasileira de Futebol (CBF) and entered into a three-year cooperation plan covering the development of fan tokens and NFTs, as well as brand presentation.
On May 20, Coinbase announced an expanded investment in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) ecosystem.
On August 18, Bitget renewed its partnership with Juventus Football Club.
Also worth noting is the recent news that crypto exchange CoinEx will be the exclusive partner of RLWC 2021.
From the green field through the basketball court to the racetrack, all crypto companies are showing their fortune outside the crypto sector. However, as the market declines and companies flock to sports, the expected marginal revenue for sports event sponsorship may fall short of expectations.
For crypto companies, immersion in sports may help them attract different users, but the regulatory risks will also rise. In the cryptocurrency market, regulation is the sword of Damocles hanging over all businesses. For example, CZ revealed that Binance has spent more than $1 billion on legal compliance.
As crypto gamers burn their money, this trademark race appears to be coming to an end, as evidenced by FTX's retreat from MLB deal talks. Crypto.com also abandoned a €500 million sponsorship deal with the UEFA Champions League earlier this summer.
However, branding and compliance have long been the focus of corporate growth in the crypto space. In terms of branding, crypto companies will adopt more new strategies in the future. As for compliance, founding teams must ensure that their companies are operating in accordance with the legal norm.
It is noteworthy that CoinEx recently obtained a license in Lithuania. Committed to “making cryptocurrency trading easier,” the exchange is always striving to facilitate access to cryptocurrency trading, help more individuals around the world use crypto assets safely and easily, and contribute positively to society. Obtaining a license in Lithuania also marks a major milestone in CoinEx's global strategic development.
We have good reason to believe that CoinEx will provide secure and convenient services to investors in more countries and regions around the world through its proven track record of legal compliance and a team and platform par excellence.
Disclaimer: This article does not provide any investment advice, and all statistics mentioned here are for reference only. The information contained herein may not be relied upon in investment decisions, for which you will be entirely responsible.