Adidas, a global sportswear maker, is heavily investing in crypto, announcing a partnership with Nasdaq-listed Coinbase crypto exchange, in the same week it decided to make a big investment. into an enclave in Sandbox’s blockchain-based virtual game world. While none of the announcements gave any details and little to say whether there is any intended connection between the two events, it is clear that the company plans to use the cryptocurrency in the future. The Sandbox makes perfect sense; if so, Coinbase can help them make the necessary investment.
Adidas took to Twitter to announce that it was partnering with cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase but revealed little about the nature of the partnership, ending the tweet with a phrase you often hear in the world. Cryptocurrency – “Probably nothing.” Coinbase has confirmed the partnership, as it replied “[Good morning]…Welcome to the party, partners! “
Adidas also takes note of the Ethereum-based VR game Sandbox and suggested that it build something in the game’s virtual lots, called the “AdiVerse” concept. Adidas already owns the property on The Sandbox, as its name can be seen on a parcel of land at these coordinates. It is unclear whether the company purchased the land, or if the land was assigned to the company by The Sandbox.
In a recent statement from an Adidas spokesperson speak with City AM, the company stated that “the metaverse is currently one of the most exciting developments in digital, making it an exciting platform for Adidas.”
While that statement is in itself a hint of the company’s future plans, it’s worth noting that Adidas is launching an NFT on POAP is very recent hinting that Coinbase could be involved in that effort, especially if the sportswear giant plans to release a larger line of non-fungible tokens (NFTs). Meanwhile, Coinbase is trying to launch an NFT marketplace of its own, and we could see Adidas use that market for NFT distribution in the future.
The company can also use Coinbase accept electronic money as a form of payment, similar to what many other companies have done in the past through Coinbase Commerce, but all of this is speculation for now.
Adidas’ move into space appears to be a swift response to rival brand Nike, which unveiled a virtual world modeled after its Roblox video game platform headquarters, becoming the one of the first major brands to mark a official entry into the metaverse. The digital space, called “Nikeland,” allows players to dress up their avatars with special Nike products and is free for anyone to access on Roblox.
