Explained: What are “fan tokens”, the cryptocurrency in Lionel Messi’s PSG package?

What are Fan Tokens?

Fan Tokens are a type of NFT (non-fungible token) which is a digital only asset. Like Bitcoin and similar digital currencies, fan tokens are volatile assets and their value can change dramatically overnight.

Fans can purchase said crypto tokens with real money to access exclusive content and augmented reality games. Among other rewards and perks, fan token holders can also vote on mostly minor decisions related to their clubs. These fan tokens are created by a crypto platform called Socios. According to the Socios website, fan tokens “give you the status of a true influencer. Step up and help your team make the right decisions by voting on all of their official polls… ”

What decisions can fans vote on?

Examples include kit designs, goal music, the team’s destination for a preseason tour. The more chips a fan has, the more votes they get in the polls. Ultimately though, the polls are decided by the clubs.

Which teams have signed up for Fan Tokens?

Arsenal, Aston Villa, Everton, Leeds, Manchester City, Barcelona, ​​AC Milan, Inter Milan, Juventus, PSG and the Portuguese national team among others. According to SportsProMedia, when Barcelona launched their first batch of Fan Tokens last June, they sold out in under two hours, generating $ 1.3 million. Socios claims fan tokens have generated nearly $ 200 million in revenue.

Has Messi been paid in crypto? Are there any previous examples?

PSG have informed Reuters that fan tokens are an “important” part of Messi’s welcome package, which has a reported value of € 25-30m ($ 29m- $ 35m).

In 2018, Turkish club Harunustaspor claimed to be the first football club in the world to pay one of their players part of their signing fees in Bitcoin. Omar Faruk Kiroglu received 0.0524 in bitcoin and 2,500 Turkish lira as part of the deal.

In Spain last January, former Real Madrid graduate and Levante striker David Barral became the first player to be bought using cryptocurrency only, when Madrid’s Segunda B DUX Internacional team acquired his signature for an undisclosed amount. Three years ago, Gibraltar United FC announced that it would pay its players in crypto.

How did Messi’s arrival help PSG’s ‘fan token’?

Immediately after the publication of the first reports linking Messi to PSG, the value of the club’s cryptocurrency more than doubled.

In June, a PSG fan token was worth $ 11.93. Thursday night it was priced at $ 43.91. The club told Reuters there had been a high volume of trading of their fan chips after reports that Messi was going to join the club. Trade volumes topped $ 1.2 billion in the days leading up to the Argentine’s arrival.

“We were able to engage with a new global audience, creating a significant digital revenue stream,” said Marc Armstrong, PSG’s director of partnerships.

Is this Messi’s first foray into cryptocurrency?

Last Wednesday, the six-time Ballon d’Or winner announced his official NFT art collection titled “The Messiverse”. “Football is like art. It’s timeless, ”Messi said in the Instagram announcement clip.

The ‘Messiverse’ collection will include four digital works of art, depicting Messi in chess-themed artwork (The King Piece), Greek mythology (Worth the Weight), science fiction (Man From the Future ) and a fourth untitled coin to be revealed on August 20.

Earlier this year, Messi also featured in the NFT Copa America in July. And in 2017, Messi signed an approval deal with SIRIN LABS, a company that launched a Blockchain phone capable of storing cryptocurrencies.