Visa Warms Up Fans With NFT Auction Ahead of Soccer World Cup in Qatar

Financial services giant Visa has set out to activate soccer fans for the upcoming World Cup Qatar 2022 with a non-fungible token (NFT) initiative. FIFA’s payment partner has teamed up with the governing body’s crypto sponsor to celebrate the planet’s most popular sport, art and technology.

Visa, the official payment technology partner of soccer’s governing body, FIFA, has announced the launch of a series of unique digital collectibles representing iconic goals from five legendary footballers. The Visa Masters of Movement NFTs are now available on Crypto.com, which is FIFA’s official crypto trading platform sponsor.

The auction comes ahead of the 2022 World Cup, which will be held between Nov. 20 and Dec. 18 this year. The experience will come to life later this month on an interactive pitch at the FIFA Fan Festival in Doha, where fans will be also offered an opportunity to create digital art inspired by their signature movements and mint it into their own NFT, a press release detailed.

Commenting on the initiative, Senior Vice President and Head of Sponsorships at Visa Andrea Fairchild stated:

As FIFA World Cup 2022 approaches, we want to celebrate football, art and technology through the lens of what makes the FIFA World Cup so special — wildly impassioned fans, legendary athletes and for a few short weeks, the ability to bring the world together in a uniquely connected way.

The project covers five works of art, inspired by goals scored by Jared Borgetti, Tim Cahill, Carli Lloyd, Michael Owen, and Maxi Rodriguez and issued as NFTs. Fans will be able to bid on the Visa Masters of Movement NFTs on Crypto.com through Nov. 8.

“The FIFA World Cup is one of the most anticipated sporting events in the world, and we are incredibly excited to give fans a new way to engage with this epic event,” added Steven Kalifowitz, Crypto.com’s chief marketing officer. He pointed out that the tokens created and collected by the fans will live forever on the blockchain.

The highest bidders for each NFT will receive the token in their Crypto.com wallet as well as signed memorabilia from the featured legendary player. Visa also said that all proceeds from the auction will be donated to Street Child United, a U.K.-based charity devoted to tackling stigma that street children around the world face.

What do you think about the Masters of Movement NFT initiative for the 2022 FIFA World Cup? Let us know in the comments section below.