January 31 – A Turkish amateur team claim they are the first club to have paid for a player with cryptocurrency.
Harunustaspor, a local amateur league club who compete in the Sakarya First Division Group B, signed 22-year old Omer Faruk Kiroglu for 2,000 liras (£377.6) worth of Bitcoin and 2,500 liras in cash, for a sum total of 4,500 liras, local reports said.
Club chairman Haldun Sehit declared that the move was the first of its kind by a sports club in Turkey and worldwide. “We did it to make a name for ourselves in the country and the world… We are proud of this achievement and know it will raise our profile,” he was quoted as saying.
European Union legislators agreed last month on stricter rules to prevent money laundering and terrorism financing on exchange platforms for Bitcoin and other virtual currencies.
Cryptocurrency is growing in popularity within sport with Arsenal recently signing a sponsorship deal with a cryptocurrency company CashBet, while the London Football Exchange has launched a football focussed $350 million cryptocurrency fundraising.
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