Lionel Messi Touts Crypto With XBTO Inter Miami MLS Jersey
In this issue of the Bloomberg Crypto newsletter, Michael P. Regan examines the Messi world of crypto sports sponsorships.
The buzziest story in sports this summer has an interesting crypto connection. It involves Lionel Messi, widely considered the greatest living
soccer player, who arrived in the US and promptly started racking up goals for his new team, Major League Soccer’s Inter Miami.
Whenever Messi takes to the pitch in the team’s flamingo-pink home jersey – or the black away kit he’s yet to wear in a game – viewers will get a flashback to the glory days of the digital-asset boom: A high-profile crypto sponsorship right there on Messi’s chest.
Now, I know what you’re thinking: The highest of high-profile Miami sports-related crypto sponsorships was none other than the basketball gym formerly known as FTX Arena. And we all know how that worked out. What are we to make of this shirt-sponsorship from the market-making and venture capital company XBTO? Well, there’s the obvious: XBTO has largely flown below the radar, and it would like to change that and get its name out there. And what better place than crypto-friendly Miami?
