What happened
Like a soccer ball near the end of its trajectory, the flight of specialty cryptocurrency Chiliz (CHZ 3.75%) headed toward the ground this week. According to data compiled by S&P Global Market Intelligence, its price slid by 11% over the five trading days, pushed downwards by chilly sentiment on crypto assets generally, and profit-taking more specifically.
So what
In the run-up to the FIFA World Cup, investors understandably became excited about Chiliz's prospects. That's because Chiliz is the cryptocurrency anchoring a sports platform called Socios, which has a heavy emphasis on soccer (or football, as it's mostly known outside of the United States).
But it wasn't only football fever driving Chiliz's price higher during the continuing deep freeze that was and is the crypto winter. Bulls on digital coins and tokens are looking in the space for more offbeat and obscure investments that have the potential to rise above the gloom.
Chiliz has been busy making other deals in non-soccer sports (such as American football), and what's more, has been pushing toward a Web3 makeover with its upcoming Chiliz 2.0 upgrade. Even though many investors are shunning cryptocurrencies, Web3 is still a hot area that some believe holds vast potential.
Now what
Yet now that the World Cup is nearing its end stages, it seems that investors are more excited about the matches themselves than about any related financial assets. Chiliz saw quite the price run-up before the tournament, so it was natural for profit-starved crypto investors to book gains while they could get them.
This shouldn't necessarily discourage Chiliz proponents from investing in, or holding their positions in, the Ethereum-based token. It is still unique on the market, and since sports are enduringly popular, its ecosystem has more than a fighting chance of success.
