Iconic football star Cristiano Ronaldo has launched his first NFT collection called CR7 NFT collection. The captain of the Portuguese national football team has signed an exclusive multi-year partnership with the global blockchain ecosystem and crypto currency infrastructure provider Binance.
The NFT launch is planned just ahead of the FIFA World Cup 2022 in Qatar, that began on Sunday. Earlier in June, Binance crypto currency exchange announced on Twitter an exclusive multi-year partnership with Ronaldo to promote crypto and NFT – potentially brining more awareness of Web 3.0 and NFT to his 101 million followers.
A 60-second short advertising video will air live across TV channels, and digital and social media platforms in more than 74 countries and in over 28 languages worldwide. Ronaldo will be featured in global marketing campaigns and he aims to introduce his fans to the world of Web 3.0 using the NFT.
The Cristiano Ronaldo NFT collection features a limited-edition of seven animated statues with four rarity levels that include Super Super Rare (SSR), Super Rare (SR), Rare and Normal. Each of these animated NFT statues will show Ronaldo in an iconic moment of his life, like his childhood in Portugal and his career-defining bicycle kick.
According to Ronaldo, it was important for him to create something memorable and unique for his fans, as they are such a big part of his success. He added that with Binance, he was able to create something that captures his passion for the game and, at the same, rewards the fans who have supported him for years.
The 45 of the highest value NFT that include 5 SSR and 40 SR statues will be auctioned on the Binance NFT marketplace and will be rewarded to the highest bidder. The auction will be open for 24 hours and the highest bidder will be decided at the end of the auction.
The bidding for the SSR statues will begin from 10,000 BUSD. For the SR statues, the bidding will begin from 1,700 BUSD. The remaining 6,600 NFT which include 6,000 Normal and 600 Rare will be available on the Binance Launchpad starting at 77 BUSD.
The new NFT collection also consists of other exclusive perks, such as a personal message from Ronaldo, autographed CR7 and Binance merchandise, guaranteed access for all future CR7 NFT drops, complimentary CR7 Mystery Boxes and entry into giveaways with signed merchandise and prizes.
Besides, new users who register on Binance will receive a Cristiano Ronaldo Mystery Box. These boxes include limited-edition Ronaldo NFT and are available for the first 1.5 million new Binance users.
For US-based Binance users, Binance US will offer a free souvenir NFT for thresholds of USD deposits made on the platform within the promotion period. Users who receive the souvenir NFT will gain whitelist access to purchase future CR7 NFT. Future sets of Cristiano Ronaldo NFT collection will be available in early 2023.
“We believe the metaverse and blockchain are the future of the internet. We are honored to collaborate with Cristiano to help more people understand blockchain and showcase how we are building Web 3.0 infrastructure for the sports and entertainment industry”, said He Yi, co-founder and chief marketing officer of Binance.
Ronaldo is one of the most followed football players on Instagram and has played for European giants like Manchester United, Real Madrid and Juventus. The 37-year old Portuguese football star has previously been an ambassador to online poker site PokerStars.
According to Binance, Ronaldo has transcended sport to become an icon in multiple industries and has amassed one of the world’s most dedicated fan bases through his authenticity, talent and charity work.
Binance plans to take the sports fandom experience to unprecedented levels through this partnership and will build on existing partnerships with the Argentine Football Association, the Brazilian Football Confederation and professional sports clubs S.S. Lazio (IT) and FC Polo (PT).
