As the drama around FTX's troubling collapse continues, leading crypto exchange Binance has launched soccer star Cristiano Ronaldo's first-ever NFT collection as part of an exclusive multi-year partnership.
The launch will be supported by a global marketing campaign intended to introduce Ronaldo fans to Web3.
“We believe the metaverse and blockchain are the future of the internet,” says Binance co-founder and CMO He Yi. “We are honored to collaborate with Cristiano to help more people understand blockchain and showcase how we are building Web3 infrastructure for the sports and entertainment industry.”
Ronaldo's inaugural NFT collection features seven animated statues with four rarity levels -- from Super Super Rare to Normal -- that depict Ronaldo in iconic life moments, from his childhood in Portugal to career-defining bicycle kicks.
There are several ways for fans to collect Ronaldo NFTs. The 45 highest-value NFTs (five Super Super Rare and 40 Super Rare) will be held for auction on the Binance NFT marketplace for only 24 hours. NFTs will be awarded to the highest bidder. Bidding prices have started at 10,000 BUSD for Super Super Rare and 1,700 BUSD for Super Rare.
The remaining 6,600 NFTs (600 Rare and 6,000 Normal) are available on Binance starting at 77 BUSD.
Each rarity level comes with its own set of exclusive perks, including personal messages from Ronaldo himself, autographed merchandise, guaranteed access for all future Ronaldo NFT drops, complimentary NFT mystery boxes, and entry into giveaways with signed merchandise and prizes.
The first 1.5 million new users to register with Binance.com will receive a free mystery box, which may include limited-edition Ronaldo NFTs.
For U.S.-based users, Binance.Us -- the U.S. partner to Binance.com -- is providing a free souvenir NFT for thresholds of USD deposits made on the platform within the promotion period. Souvenir NFTs will grant whitelist access to purchase future Ronaldo NFTs.
Binance says that future sets of the Ronaldo NFT collection will become available in early 2023.
According to AdAge, Binance has a 60-second spot now running on TV, digital, and social channels across 74 countries and 28 languages.