James Rodriguez: Football star launches cryptocurrency
It’s rare you hear of a football player turning down a commercial opportunity, but nevertheless the news that James Rodriguez is making a move into cryptocurrency is a relatively surprising one.
The Colombia and Bayern Munich playmaker announced himself as a global star at the last World Cup and won a Bundesliga title on loan in Germany this year, having joined parent club Real Madrid after finishing as the top scorer at the 2014 tournament.
But it would seem that the 26-year-old’s interests extend beyond sport.
Rodriguez’s cryptocurrency will go on sale through blockchain-powered mobile app SelfSell on June 12th, titled JR10.
8% of the JR10 tokens will be given to Rodriguez’s fans ahead of the launch, and users will have the opportunity to win exclusive prizes – as well as potentially making money if the currency’s value develops.
Football players, and sports stars in general, have been slowly waking up to the power of digital marketing to enhance their brand in recent years.
Massive sponsorship deals and image rights clauses in salaries have been a fixture in the industry for decades, but the explosion of social media has opened athletes – and the brands they represent – up to larger audiences than ever.
And this is why Rodriguez’s foray into cryptocurrency could be significant. While currencies such as Bitcoin have seen media coverage amid wild swings in their value over the last year, crypto and blockchain technology are far from mainstream.
But collaboration between crypto and sports could open up the technology to a new, massive audience.
“Value yourself, value your future in this new era of innovation,” Rodriguez said in a video played at the launch of JR10.
If more global stars join the crypto revolution, then the future of currencies such as JR10 will be looking ever more valuable, for both those marketing and using them.
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