Fan token company Chiliz has continued to expand its workforce despite the ongoing bear market, reflecting a growing trend in the fan token sector. The overall cryptocurrency market has seen a massive selloff in 2022, with the total market capitalization plummeting 60% since the beginning of the year. Some major crypto companies, including Coinbase and Gemini, had to cut their workforce by 10%-20% to maintain operations and continue serving their clients. While a wide number of crypto businesses have faced challenges amid the cryptocurrency winter, the fan token industry appears to have shown some resilience. Chiliz has increased the company’s …

Nonfungible tokens (NFTs) and the sports world are on a mutually beneficial trajectory into the next generation of connectivity. The latter is a catalyst for more mainstream adoption, with average sports fans rushing to collect NFT memorabilia and Web3-backed event tickets. While NFTs give the industry never-before-experienced levels of democracy and the connectivity which fans crave. The platform FANtium is using NFTs to take financing athletes to the next level. Fans can use digital assets like bets on the future success of their favorite up-and-coming sports stars. However, instead of placing a bet and walking away with only a monetary …

Formula One is looking to establish itself within the Web3 ecosystem with eight recently filed trademarks for its globally recognized “F1” abbreviation. According to licensed trademark attorney Mike Kondoudis, the race-car league filed eight trademark applications on Oct. 5 covering cryptocurrency, nonfungible tokens (NFTs), crypto marketplaces, retail stores for virtual goods, cryptocurrency trading and mining, and blockchain financial transactions. Formula One has filed 8 trademarks for "F1" covering: Cryptocurrency + NFTs NFT + Crypto marketplaces Retail stores for virtual goods Blockchain financial transactions Cryptocurrency trading + mining … and more!#NFTs #Metaverse #Cryptocurrency #Web3 #F1 pic.twitter.com/C3OYo3wSl8 — Mike Kondoudis (@KondoudisLaw) October …

Cryptocurrency exchange Crypto.com has reportedly reduced the scale of many of its sponsorship deals with sports organizations amid staff cuts and the market downturn. According to an Oct. 6 report, Ad Age tech reporter Asa Hiken said Crypto.com cut the scope of sponsorship agreements inked with major sports organizations including Los Angeles' Angel City Football Club, the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar, and esports tournament host Twitch Rivals — in some cases reportedly attempting to pull out of the deals entirely. Hiken cited unnamed former and current Crypto.com employees, who said the crypto exchange began considering such actions following …

When things don't go as planned in your career, finding opportunities in other fields is the way to go according to Lewis Neal, a former National Football League (NFL) defensive tackle. Speaking to Cointelegraph at the Blockchain Economy Dubai Summit 2022, Neal shared the story of how he went from playing professional football to exploring the finance world, eventually leading him to Bitcoin (BTC) and crypto wallets. Neal explained that his expectations were high when he started football. Like many aspiring professional sports guys, he thought that he would be the star of the show. However, things didn't turn out …

In this week’s newsletter, read about how Warner Music Group partnered with OpenSea to give artists a way to engage with their audiences. Find out how Tennis legend Maria Sharapova is exploring her growing interest in nonfungible tokens (NFTs) and check out how blockchain game Illuvium is trying to create an interoperable game. In other news, Meta enabled cross-posting for NFTs on Instagram and Facebook. And, don’t forget this week’s Nifty News featuring the Build-A-Bear Workshop entering Web3 and a CryptoPunk selling for 3,300 Ether (ETH) amid the bear market. Warner Music Group partners with OpenSea to create more Web3 …

Tennis legend Maria Sharapova appeared at the Binance Blockchain Week Paris 2022 to share her interest in nonfungible tokens (NFTs). During an exclusive interview with Cointelegraph, Sharapova mentioned that “she is exposing herself to this new world of crypto and Web3,” noting that the sector will help her better engage with her fans. Sharapova was also one of the strategic investors behind MoonPay’s Series A financing round, yet she mentioned that she aims to bridge her personal experiences to the digital world moving forward. Cointelegraph: What are you doing here today at Binance Blockchain Week Paris? Maria Sharapova: I’m crypto …

Karate Combat, a prominent full-contact martial arts league, announced the decision to form a decentralized autonomous organization (DAO) to transition its governance to fans and athletes. Karate Combat’s DAO will be launched as part of a three-year sponsorship deal with Hedera’s HBAR Foundation, expected to go live in December 2022. Holders of Karate Combat’s in-house governance token, KARATE, will get to vote on various decisions, which include determining the league’s budget, resource allocation, supplier selection, marketing strategy and rule changes. In addition, the DAO will enable fans to vote on athlete-related decisions such as fighter contracts and fight match-up selections …

Decentralized blockchain-based metaverse The Sandbox has held its first hybrid digital and real-life wedding on its Metaverse. The bride and groom, Singaporean couple Joanne Tham and Clarence Chan, CEO of music company Bandwagon, celebrated their matrimony on Sept. 17 in a “70s disco glam” themed wedding, which took place in a digital replica of Singapore's famous Alkaff Mansion. ❤️ A @TheSandboxGame wedding just happened a few hours ago. Congratulations @clarcrypto ! A special thank you to @borgetsebastien . A feature video dropping today. @thecobbleland #wedding #metaverse pic.twitter.com/141o915Hew — Smobler Studios (@smoblerstudios) September 17, 2022 While the couple was physically present …

The sponsorship of high-profile sports and teams may be key to legitimizing the crypto industry to the general masses, according to Luke Ryan, Head of Content at Australian crypto exchange CoinJar. In May 2021, the exchange became the first crypto company in Australia to sponsor an Australian Football League (AFL) club by partnering with the Melbourne Demons. Speaking to Cointelegraph at the Australian Crypto Convention on Sept. 18, Ryan remarked the AFL partnership changed the discussion around cryptocurrency in the country and that “it gives cryptocurrency a bigger sense of permanence.” “Perhaps prior to this real punch into the sporting …

The inclusive crypto ecosystem has become home to numerous A-list celebrities over the years — primarily driven by the nonfungible tokens (NFT) hype of 2021. However, despite the prolonged bear market and an evident dip in cryptocurrency prices, celebrities continue to pour in support for the crypto market. Over the past year, celebrities have started exploring sub-ecosystems beyond NFTs, trying to diversify their presence across trading, gaming and other investment avenues. In this light, here’s an overview of some of the most influential celebrities that got into crypto over the past year and how well-prepared they are for the next …

Popular comedic writer and actor Bill Murray had his Ethereum wallet hacked for around 110 Wrapped ETH (wETH) worth $172,000 late last week. The auction for the The Bill Murray 1,000 NFT drop was just coming to a close on Thursday Sept. 1, having generated a total of 119.2 wETH worth of sales as part of a charity fundraiser for Chive Charities. However hackers were reportedly watching Murray’s wallet all day, and pounced to swipe nearly all of the funds as the sale came to a close. While it is not 100% certain how the hackers gained access to Murray’s …