The legendary Portuguese football player Cristiano Ronaldo is facing a massive legal battle worth $1 billion due to his endorsement of non-fungible tokens (NFTs) that are being pushed by the massive cryptocurrency company Binance.

Background of NFTs and the Ronaldo Collection on Binance

Despite having no tangible worth, NFTs—digital assets with unique IDs that signify ownership of online content—rose to prominence. The world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange, Binance, produced a line of NFTs with a Ronaldo theme in November 2022. The NFTs were carefully branded under his recognizable “CR7” logo, which combines his jersey number and initials. Binance wanted to take advantage of this trend.

The original cost of the animated representations, which captured significant events from Ronaldo’s remarkable career, ranged from $77 to $10,000. According to the lawsuit, during the first week of their release, the “premium” NFTs quickly sold out, which caused a remarkable “500% increase in searches” for Binance. But the celebration was short-lived, as the $77 Ronaldo NFT’s value fell to only $1 in less than a year due to the subsequent NFT market collapse.

Claims of Deceptive Advertising and Financial Losses

As a result of this turbulent development, the plaintiffs are requesting damages “exceeding” $1 billion. According to their argument, investors who had faith in the long-term worth of the digital assets suffered significant financial losses as a result of Ronaldo’s involvement in the “deceptive and unlawful” advertising of these NFTs.

This legal quagmire highlights the difficulties and disputes that exist within the NFT market, especially when prominent endorsements come under examination given the unstable nature of digital assets. As they negotiate this historic litigation, Ronaldo’s legal team will have to deal with the complex issues of misleading promotion and possible investor disasters.