Algorand Price Up 15% After Deal With FIFA

The price of Algorand’s native currency ALGO spiked after the blockchain revealed it would be a sponsor of FIFA and help the organization develop its digital assets strategy. 

ALGO’s price was $0.68 at 10:30 am ET, up about 15% from 24 hours ago, according to data compiled by Blockworks. The price, which was more than $2 as recently as November, is down 50% from a year ago and down 24% month over month.

The current market capitalization of ALGO is roughly $4.6 billion, making it the 31st largest coin, ahead of Stellar’s XLM.

Algorand will become the official blockchain platform of FIFA and provide an official blockchain-supported wallet solution, the company said in a Monday statement. It will be a FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 regional supporter in North America and Europe and a FIFA Women’s World Cup Australia and New Zealand 2023 official sponsor.

FIFA will offer advertising, media exposure and promotional opportunities to Algorand, while the blockchain will assist FIFA in exploring ways to delve deeper into digital assets.

A spokesperson did not immediately comment on other specifics of the deal.

The agreement comes after Algorand Foundation CEO Staci Warden told Blockworks in February the blockchain was seeking to bolster its marketing efforts by quadrupling the size of its community engagement team and expanding its developer relations unit.  

“This partnership with FIFA, the most globally recognized and distinguished organization in sports, will showcase the potential that the Algorand blockchain has to transform the way we all experience the world’s game,” Algorand Founder Silvio Micali said in a statement.

Switzerland-based FIFA, short for Fédération Internationale de Football Association, was founded in 1904 and is the international governing body of association football. The organization hit a high of roughly $4.6 billion in revenue in 2018, according to Statista, due in part to its television broadcasting rights.

“The collaboration is a clear indication of FIFA’s commitment to continually seeking innovative channels for sustainable revenue growth for further reinvestment back into football ensuring transparency to our stakeholders and world-wide football fans — a key element of our vision to make football truly global,” FIFA President Gianni Infantino said in a statement.

Algorand will not be the only crypto company with brand exposure at the World Cup later this year. Crypto.com announced in March that it would be the exclusive cryptocurrency trading platform sponsor for the soccer event, which is set to take place in November and December.

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