Messi, arguably the most famous and, given his dramatic exit from Barcelona in favor of Paris Saint-Germain, most mediated footballer of the moment, is also getting in the NFT game. In partnership with Australian artist Bosslogic, Messi is launching a brand new, certified NFT collection, aptly called “The Messiverse,” on Etherity.
This sounds very much like when rapper Kanye West branded himself Yeezus, but there is no gratuitous aggrandizing of himself on the part of Messi. Bosslogic signs his name to the collection, which, from what we gather, is also sanctioned by Messi. It’s paid partnership, but with a digital, modern twist.
The collection will go live on Etherity.io on August 20, 2021, and will comprise four separate NFTs meant to honor Messi and represent at least a fraction of his many achievements in sports. They are “Man from the Future,” “Worth the Weight,” and “The King Piece,” all three by Bosslogic, and an untitled forth NFT by Impossible Brief. This one will be kept a secret until the day of the premiere, so it’s probably the piece de resistance of the collection.
“Man from the Future” depicts Messi as a bionic, AI-powered form; “Worth the Weight” has him as an Atlas-like figure that carries the weight of the world of football, while “The King Piece” is pretty explanatory: Messi is the kind of “creative soccer stardom.” As with most other NFTs, these four will also play on loop, and will sell to the highest bidder.
