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Football and crypto are two things that attract millions of people around the world. Some people are fans of Real Madrid or Man City, while others are fans of Bitcoin or Ethereum. But if you take a closer look, they both have a lot in common: high volatility, legendary ‘stars’, loyal fans who do not forgive fails, and incredible comebacks that make your heart rate rise.
Now let's imagine for a moment that footballers are financial assets, and each match affects their ‘value’ in the same way that news affects the cryptocurrency rate. Who will bring more ‘goals’ - that is, profit - to your investment portfolio?
<h3 id="playertokenvalue-what-s-messi-s-market-cap-in-web3">PlayerTokenValue — What’s Messi’s Market Cap in Web3?</h3>
Having recently come across the concept of Tokenized Attention - the idea that human attention can not only be measured, but also digitized and monetized - I wondered what if we applied it to football? Football players compete for the attention of millions of fans, sponsors, and media around the world every day, so why not try to measure their “tokenized value”?
So, inspired by this concept, I imagined each player as a conditional token. Its value - let's call it PlayerTokenValue - can be formed not only based on sports results, but also on popularity and screen time. For calculations, I decided to develop the following formula:
PlayerTokenValue = (Market Value × Performance Index × Popularity Score) / Active Career Minutes
Where:
<ul>
 <li>Market Value - current market value of the player according to Transfermarkt</li>
 <li>Performance Index - performance in the season (goals + assists) per 90 minutes for this season</li>
 <li>Popularity Score - a conditional popularity rating from 1 to 10, which takes into account social networks, advertising contracts and media presence</li>
 <li>Active Career Minutes - the total number of minutes played in a career</li>
</ul>
Here, I decided to go further and compare these notional “token players” with specific crypto assets. In this parallel, the asset data is taken from <a href="https://www.coingecko.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">CoinGecko</a>:
<ul>
 <li>PlayerTokenValue = Current price of the asset at the time of writing;</li>
 <li>Market Value = Market Cap;</li>
 <li>Performance Index = 24H Volume;</li>
 <li>Popularity Score = Ranking by Market Cap;</li>
</ul>
<h3 id="btc-eth-or-sol-who-would-you-buy-if-they-were-footballers">BTC, ETH or SOL — Who Would You Buy If They Were Footballers?</h3>
Erling Haaland is a Norwegian striker who has been breaking through opponents' defenses time and time again in the ‘Man City’ shirt, a club that has already plunged into the crypto world thanks to its <a href="https://www.mancity.com/club/partners/okx" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">partnership</a> with OKX.
<ul>
 <li>Market Value: €180M → $195.3M</li>
 <li>Performance Index: (39 ÷ 4,041) × 90 = 0.869 G+A per 90</li>
 <li>Career Minutes: ~ 23,847</li>
 <li>Popularity Score: 8</li>
</ul>
If you imagine Erling Haaland as a token and take into account all the indicators, we will get an asset with a “price” of approximately $56,934. By way of analogy, the footballer can be equated to Bitcoin, the flagship crypto market with a market capitalization of over $2.1 trillion, a daily trading volume of $20 billion, and a price of $108, 210. Although the asset does not play soccer, score or celebrate goals, it has a daily impact on the global economy. If Haaland is a Premier League star who flashes on the field, Bitcoin is one in the financial universe that has been shining continuously for more than a decade.
<img src="https://lh7-rt.googleusercontent.com/docsz/AD_4nXfuvDqqcTWit1dgfebwTPig5zC7Ux7TgwQWaMTNs40-vhB7svc6x3FODIDXHmx6-xtLBEGW3mZsaqhzneo5_89e6C-zP8AeN4ympEwe6Owf1mUSaGNoen7bd83KQtWYkijQO_Nj?key=x2OylLtv8DgPkjoSaCEQDw">
Cristiano Ronaldo is a Portuguese forward and captain of the Al-Nassr and the Portugal national team. His exclusivity goes far beyond the football field. Ronaldo is actively immersed in the world of cryptocurrencies: he has collaborated with the Sorare platform, issued his own NFT cards, and <a href="https://cointelegraph.com/news/cristiano-ronaldo-and-binance-team-up-to-launch-football-skills-collectibles" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">creates</a> exclusive collections with Binance, making him one of the few footballers with real experience in the crypto sphere.
<ul>
 <li>Market Value: €12M → $13.02M</li>
 <li>Performance Index: (39 ÷ 3,547) × 90 = 0.990 G+A per 90</li>
 <li>Career Minutes: ~ 86,541</li>
 <li>Popularity Score: 10</li>
</ul>
If we consider him as a digital asset, the “value of his token” is estimated at about $1,489. By analogy with cryptocurrencies, Ronaldo can be compared to BNB, the fifth-largest crypto asset by capitalization with a market value of over $96.4 billion, a daily trading volume of about $679.3 million, and a price of $663.15. Just like BNB, Ronaldo is a globally recognized brand, well known and popular, but at the same time gradually fading into the shadow of new trends.
<img src="https://lh7-rt.googleusercontent.com/docsz/AD_4nXcFFyb0U-zArzBHpZvQKrrA9g9iaqXRmLjvrr65CXSgiVphnGYbKvXcqk5TIUvCSaE7cwFxbA6eqT_Scpf7hGkgYOBmG9O1nEEIxo1su8vho-41GRfZID9M0Hs-duhHyrIWM4qg?key=x2OylLtv8DgPkjoSaCEQDw">
Dušan Vlahović is a Serbian striker for Juventus, a club that is actively integrating into the crypto world through a <a href="https://www.juventus.com/en/news/articles/whitebit-becomes-official-sleeve-partner-and-official-cryptocurrency-exchange-of-juventus" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">partnership</a> with WhiteBIT, becoming the Official Cryptocurrency Exchange Partner and Official Sleeve Partner of the club.
<ul>
 <li>Market Value: €35M → $37.98M</li>
 <li>Performance Index: (22 ÷ 2,695) × 90 = 0.735 G+A per 90</li>
 <li>Career Minutes: 19,388</li>
 <li>Popularity Score: 6</li>
</ul>
If you imagine Vlahović as a crypto token, his “price” is about $8,639 according to the formula. In the crypto industry, the footballer's “value” is reflected by Solana, an asset with a market capitalization of $81.8 billion and the 6th place in the CoinGecko ranking with a price of $152.66. Just as Vlahović is rapidly gaining form and has great potential for growth in the industry, Solana is showing rapid development and still has a lot of room to climb in the crypto rankings. They are both stars in their respective fields, with prospects that appeal to fans and investors alike.<img src="https://lh7-rt.googleusercontent.com/docsz/AD_4nXe3RLmWAk6Bkqphx7n0cuttVNtuFgTOCSCPo7sWL89-mylU6Ct07CJdf9saR0Ug-v0zB6ifmTENYGdDLlLeXnCMkV3xACDTvlZBLK5YdKRz2jrtt-kOYj8D4RRDCcva6NeaJdgzEA?key=x2OylLtv8DgPkjoSaCEQDw">
Lionel Messi is an Argentine forward, captain of Inter Miami and the Argentine national team, who, like Ronaldo, has not stayed away from the cryptocurrency world. Messi is an official <a href="https://www.bitget.com/blog/articles/Bitget-partners-with-Leo-Messi" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">partner</a> of the Bitget exchange and supports the Planet eco-project, as well as has his own Messi Coin token that represents his football achievements.
<ul>
 <li>Market Value: €18M → $19.53M</li>
 <li>Performance Index: (22 ÷ 2,031) × 90 = 0.975 G+A per 90</li>
 <li>Career Minutes: ~ 77,044</li>
 <li>Popularity Score: 9</li>
</ul>
If we imagine Messi as a crypto asset, its “value” will be about $2,224. In this respect, it resembles Ethereum, the second-largest cryptocurrency by capitalization with a market value of over $307.2B and a daily trading volume of $13.6B. Just as Messi plays with finesse and stability, Ethereum remains a major player, even if its popularity has already passed its peak. They are both high-end symbols that continue to influence their respective industries, whether it be soccer or blockchain technology.
<img src="https://lh7-rt.googleusercontent.com/docsz/AD_4nXeKmGu45X3p1EFvLP7UZa1Xre3JaTBLs063dJyKrvWLe7oJQqIACjjAyB1YHHCfCXcAZ1t5d7yjImhRJhrBNxxnLuu83KP5zyI1XsEM0mt8V6NL6kWQnkmnywNFSWRkbbjcyghrkQ?key=x2OylLtv8DgPkjoSaCEQDw">
Antoine Griezmann is a French footballer who plays in the attacking line for Atlético de Madrid, a club that has also joined the crypto industry through a <a href="https://www.kraken.com/en-gb/atleticodemadrid" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">partnership</a> with the Kraken exchange.
<ul>
 <li>Market Value: €18M → $19.53M</li>
 <li>Performance Index: (26 ÷ 3,709) × 90 = 0.631 G+A per 90</li>
 <li>Career Minutes: 56,516</li>
 <li>Popularity Score: 6</li>
</ul>
If we imagine Griezmann as a token, its “value” is approximately $1,308. In the world of cryptocurrencies, the footballer can be compared to Litecoin, which has a price of $86.61, a capitalization of over $6.5 billion, and a daily trading volume of $328 million. LTC is not as large as BTC, but it is still one of the leading players in the crypto market, just as Griezmann is one of the key figures in European football. Both combine stability and significant influence in their respective fields while remaining recognizable and effective.
<img src="https://lh7-rt.googleusercontent.com/docsz/AD_4nXeImYQI948Le0xlFRsyPrLf5TpE0MGiqx0BISgkmuTbil6qJMCOXu06TmaonXqif0-TPYvvIbyWNOcUuhByoF-7h3w4M7KYb6xxB2wbaemw7x1T5hcMTcRmCVe4imZN-j9mxLLG4Q?key=x2OylLtv8DgPkjoSaCEQDw">
<h3 id="so-who-scores-more-goals-for-your-portfolio">So, who scores more goals for your portfolio?</h3>
While Bitcoin might outshine on the global financial stage and Messi still works his magic on the pitch, both markets — football and crypto — are driven by performance, hype, and narrative. In the end, whether you’re holding tokens or jerseys, the game is the same: attention is the currency, and value follows the crowd.
Choose your players wisely — both in football and in your crypto wallet.

Footballers as Coins: If Haaland Were Bitcoin and Messi Were Ethereum

Table of Contents

Vlad Anderson

Other articles published on Jul 8, 2025

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