At 41, Ronaldo's Crypto Legacy Still Haunted by $1B Lawsuit

Cristiano Ronaldo took the pitch for Portugal against Colombia in their Group K match at the 2026 World Cup. He is 41 years old. This is his sixth consecutive World Cup appearance.

Portugal had already secured progression from Group K. A 1-1 draw with DR Congo was followed by a 5-0 win over Uzbekistan. Ronaldo scored twice in that game, becoming the first player to score in six different World Cups. He holds Portugal's all-time record with 143 goals in 226 caps.

Off the pitch, Ronaldo's crypto legacy remains unresolved. In 2023, a class-action lawsuit was filed against him over his 2022 partnership with Binance. The suit sought at least $1 billion in damages. Plaintiffs argued that Ronaldo's endorsement of Binance NFT collections drove retail investors toward unregistered securities. When NFT values collapsed, those investors suffered losses.

This World Cup looks different from 2022. Back then, football and crypto were closely linked. Fan tokens from Socios were heavily marketed. Binance ran Ronaldo's NFT campaigns. Crypto.com had its name on stadiums. This time, there are no fan token activations or NFT drops tied to Ronaldo's sixth World Cup. No blockchain projects are linked to the match.

The lawsuit's central claim – that celebrity-promoted NFTs were unregistered securities – has not been tested in court. If a judge rules in favor of the plaintiffs, the precedent could reach beyond Ronaldo. Every athlete and influencer who ran similar campaigns during the bull market could face legal exposure. Platforms that facilitated those sales would need to reconsider their compliance.

For now, Ronaldo is focused on the game. Portugal faces Colombia in Miami. No crypto distractions. Just football.