Adidas issues NFT sneakers! Collaboration with STEPN for "money for running". What is the sports giant planning?

Adidas is breaking into the chain! These damn NFT sneakers with STEPN are already annoying me.

The sports giant Adidas has decided to jump into blockchain gaming! Recently, the creators of the silly game "run-and-earn" announced a long-term partnership with Adidas, releasing a limited edition of NFT sneakers.

The first wave - only 1000 pairs of sneakers STEPN x adidas Genesis. They are printed with the STEPN lightning and the classic three stripes of Adidas. Price? 10,000 GMT tokens - about 2,500 dollars! Are you crazy! For virtual sneakers!

These NFTs will be on the Solana blockchain and sold on the MOOAR platform. Of course, the big bosses assure that this is just the beginning of a long-term partnership that "will unite physical and digital collectibles."

Shiti Mangani, the director of STEPN, is talking about "stimulating Web3 communities" and "the shared values of sports and fitness". Of course, the main value is our money in their pockets! He says that the collaboration will extend to the applications of both brands, but the details, you see, "are not being disclosed yet."

The sale of these virtual sneakers will take place in two stages - first a lottery for holders of other NFTs, then a public sale from April 18 to 21. Artificial scarcity, as usual.

What is Adidas doing in Web3? They've been venturing into blockchain for two years! In 2021, they launched "Adidas Originals: Into The Metaverse" and created the studio "/// Studio". In May 2023, they began a three-year partnership with Tokenproof for "tokenized verification". In August, they released sneakers with BAPEBAPE and sold digital assets at auction for the first time.

I think this is just a way to make money off crypto enthusiasts. Before, we were made to run for health, now - for cryptocurrency. What's next? Virtual socks that pay for every step?

Source: Decoding, Forbes.