It does not always look like football and bitcoin would go together, but today, we are being given another example of how they do in the form of New York Giants running back Saquon Barkley, who has agreed to a deal that will give him all his marketing money in bitcoin.
Saquon Barkley Is Now a Bitcoin Devotee
Barkley has become a major crypto fan over the years. So much so, that he is now willing to accept all the money from his recent endorsement deals in the world’s number one digital currency by market cap. In a recent interview, he commented that he no longer trusts the U.S. dollar given how serious inflation has become in recent months.
He comments:
I am taking my marketing money in bitcoin. Now that I see [issues] with inflation and learning so much about bitcoin… I think it would be the smart thing to do, the right thing to do, to start taking my investment money through bitcoin.
This is not the first time a football player has accepted bitcoin payments. The first was arguably Russell Okung, a former player for the Carolina Panthers. Okung made history when he announced that half of his $13 million salary would be doled out in bitcoin, while Sean Culkin of the Kansas City Chiefs took things a step further and asked to receive his entire football-playing salary in the digital currency.
Barkley is starting out small in that for now, it will just be his endorsement funds doled out in the world’s leading form of crypto, but hey… You got to start somewhere. His interview continued with:
When you see the KD’s the Lebrons and Bradys of the world and you want to create generational wealth, you cannot do that with the sport that I play and the position that I play and coming off injuries. When you sit out of football for a whole year, you realize that this game could be taken away from you.
At the time of writing, it is estimated that Barkley’s endorsement deal is worth approximately $10 million per year.
Football and BTC… A Perfect Match?
Prior to Barkley’s acceptance of BTC, the New York Giants had partnered with Grayscale Investments, the largest bitcoin management network on the planet. New York Giants chief commercial officer Pete Guelli expressed his excitement about the move, claiming:
We are excited to partner with Grayscale, who are innovative leaders in the digital currency market. During our extensive evaluation of the space, we determined that we not only wanted a partner that understood the value of aligning with the Giants brand, but also could guide us in navigating the cryptocurrency ecosystem. Grayscale quickly emerged as a company that shared our passion for the New York market but also has the institutional knowledge and network of partners that we can access as crypto continues to evolve.
