Many soccer-related fan token prices have plummeted since the games began, indicating that cryptocurrencies linked to national soccer teams have failed to capture the attention of 2022 FIFA World Cup enthusiasts.
Notably, these cryptocurrencies peaked well before any of the teams even stepped onto the field in Qatar.
According to CoinGecko, the associated digital fan tokens in Portugal, Spain, Brazil, and Argentina have fallen in price by 60% to 88% since the start of the World Cup on Nov. 20.
This despite Brazil, Argentina, and Portugal reaching the quarter-finals, and Spain being a serious contender until they were eliminated on Dec. 6.
The tokens do typically respond to immediate outcomes, with Spain's SNFT token down 39.1% over the past 24 hours following the team's loss to Morocco, but Portugal's POR token is also down 6.1% over the same time period despite the country's 6-1 victory against Switzerland on Dec. 6.
As a result, it appears that the tokens are becoming less sensitive to the accomplishments of the connected teams.
The all-time highs (ATHs) for Portugal and Argentina fan tokens were both reached on November 18, while Spain and Brazil fan tokens' ATHs were reached on Sept. 28.
A similar pattern can be seen in the chart for Chiliz (CHZ), the native token behind the big fan token network Socios, which peaked on Nov. 20 but has since dropped 36%.
The 24-hour trading volumes of tokens have also decreased dramatically from the start, falling between 79% and 88% since Nov. 20.
However, critics of fan tokens perceive the market as a predatory technique for skilled dealers to milk eager followers out of capital.
Martin Calladine, author of The Ugly Game - a book examining the ugly side of FIFA's connections with Qatar and its campaign for the 2022 World Cup - gave The Athletic a bleak assessment of the fan tokens in August 2021.
"We see the price of tokens being driven up in anticipation of football events like signings or titles," he said. "Traders cash them out, prices crash, and fans are left sitting on losses - victims of their enthusiasm for their clubs."
This group of tokens was initially intended to give supporters of teams new ways to connect with them, such as by letting token holders vote on details like what should be inscribed on the captain's armband.
