What happened

Today, one of the more distinctive crypto projects is Chillz (CHZ -22.48%). This unique cryptocurrency backs a blockchain-based sports entertainment platform, Socios, which allows investors to have a say in the governance of their favorite sports brands. As it happens, the Chillz team and Socios have been on a partnership tear, leading to an impressive rally this month. Today, Chillz is up another 2.8% as of 12:15 p.m. ET. However, over the past month, this token has surged 65.5%, outpacing most major cryptos over this time frame.

On Aug. 1, which is really when Chillz started to pick up steam, Chillz announced a massive $102 million stake in FC Barcelona's Barca Studios. This deal amounts to roughly one-quarter of this endeavor, enabling Chillz to grow its presence in the sports-related NFT and metaverse worlds.

Today, crypto exchange ByBit announced that Chillz would be powering a Fan Token Kickoff for the platform. This contest is expected to run from Aug. 19 to Sep. 2 and give users chances to win 200,000 Tether (USDT -0.03%) stablecoins in prizes. 

So what

Given the still-nascent nature of the crypto space, partnerships play an important role for investors in gauging what the growth prospects of a given project are. With the Chillz team clearly in business development mode, this sports-related blockchain platform provider is certainly seeing an uptick in interest.

Now, other projects that have made significant investments in sports-related advertising deals haven't seen the sort of ROI investors might expect. Accordingly, time will tell how fruitful this investment ultimately is.

That said, for those bullish on the future of crypto in the sports and entertainment sector, Chillz is a project worth taking a look at. 

Now what

The whole concept of cryptocurrency being used as a governance or voting tool for fans is certainly an intriguing one. Given the high-profile partnership Chillz has been able to nab thus far, perhaps there's a lot to like.

That said, this project is one that appears to be very niche and prone to risks tied to increased competition and low barriers to entry in this space. Whether Chillz can continue to grow over time will depend on its success with its existing partnerships. Thus, right now, this token is one I'd view as a speculative bet, even with these key partnerships underway.