TL;DR Breakdown
- Polkadot proposes to be official shirt sponsors of FC Barcelona.
- Music platform, Sportify also wants to be sponsors.
Popular blockchain project Polkadot has submitted an offer to be sponsors of Spanish football giant FC Barcelona. They are proposing printing “Polkadot” on the sleeves of the jersey and the cuffs of the training suit.
According to Barcelona-based sports newspaper FC Barcelona Noticias, Polkadot, alongside music platform, Spotify made their sponsorship offers known to the Spanish football giant last week.
Players of the club currently wear the Rakuten logo on their jersey as the Japanese e-commerce firm is the club’s official sponsor. However, the partnership between the two entities is due in July this year, and the soccer team is seeking to ink a deal with a new organization.
According to a recent announcement, one of the options is Polkadot – a blockchain network, which was established in 2016 but gained more traction last year. The club described the protocol as a platform that allows a “high number of transactions by second.” Specifically, the project can perform 1,000 TPS. Once it becomes fully operational, it is expected to increase to 1,000,000.
Barça’s other possible partner is the digital music streaming service Spotify. The Spanish team revealed it will thoroughly examine the options and choose the sponsor responding to its long-term strategy: “The club has decided to take things with patience to analyze in-depth each proposal in procures to reach the most profitable agreement on a long-term basis.”
Barcelona not new to crypto world
The Spanish club is not a newbie in the crypto world, however. Months back, the team signed a global partnership with the NFT marketplace Ownix to release a non-fungible collection for its fans. Shortly after, though, the club canceled the agreement.
Polkadot is not the only cryptocurrency company interested in landing the FC Barcelona jersey sponsorship deal. The former UEFA Champions League winner has received offers from crypto-related companies, including Binance and FTX.
FC Barcelona, which is currently cash-strapped, is unwilling to accept any offer below €55 million ($62.7 million) per season, the amount agreed with Rakuten.
