The recent trend of athletes and sports stars receiving salaries in Bitcoin is growing. From individual players to entire clubs, everyone is adopting Bitcoin payments. The recent addition to this list of players accepting payments in Bitcoin is Kieran Gibbs – star player of Major League Soccer. Major League Soccer, or MLS, is the leading soccer tournament in the country. Global superstars like Zlatan Ibrahimovic and David Beckham have played in the tournament, and it draws heavy sponsorship from many companies.
Kieran Gibbs will partner with crypto finance firm XBTO to convert half of his salary to Bitcoin. It is not yet clear whether he would first receive his salary in USD and then proceed to convert it to Bitcoin through XBTO. Alternatively, he can receive half of his salary Bitcoin directly through XBTO. Either way, his decision to have half of his revenue in Bitcoin hints at the growing popularity of cryptocurrency among athletes and players.
Crypto firms have given a lifeline to many sporting tournaments following the Covid-19 induced losses. Many clubs and teams have partnered with cryptocurrency firms to give a boost to their revenue stream, and they have been largely successful. Cryptocurrency has now entered all major sporting tournaments, from soccer to MMA to baseball. Now it seems that players are also convinced about the potential and premise of Bitcoin and want to receive a part of their income in Bitcoin. The association with these popular players has also helped Bitcoin’s growth, with more people now being open to the idea of payments in Bitcoin.
