STEPN GO Eyes Comeback with New Adidas NFT Partnership

STEPN GO, a Web3 lifestyle app with Game-Fi and social-fi elements, is partnering with Adidas for a new NFT project.

The project gained significant attention in May 2022, ranking fourth in Solana Ignition Global Hackathon’s gaming track and achieving a transaction volume of $35.3 billion that month.

Adidas and STEPN GO Collaborate Again

The collaboration between STEPN GO and Adidas introduces a second series of 1,000 co-branded Genesis Sneakers as an exclusive NFTs. This follows their initial partnership, which launched the first Genesis Sneakers in April 2024. The collection is available through a raffle mint on MOOAR, FSL’s NFT marketplace.

Similar to the previous edition, the new Genesis series features four unique designs: adiZero Adios Pro 3, Ultraboost 5X, Supernova Rise, and adiStar BYD. This marks the continuation of their innovative Web3 and NFT ventures.

“In total 996 Genesis sneakers will be raffled off via the Mooar marketplace from September 25 to September 30. The selling price will be conducted again in the STEPN GO native token GMT and for 10.000 $GMT per raffle ticket. If you don’t win, your GMT is refunded,” the announcement read.

Read more: What Is STEPN (GMT)?

For Adidas, this partnership reinforces its commitment to exploring the future of wearables in Web3. For STEPN GO, it broadens its product offerings and helps rebuild its user base.

“This next partnership phase with adidas allows us to further integrate digital collectibles and fitness rewards. We’re thrilled to keep pushing the boundaries of what’s possible in the Web3 lifestyle space,” FSL Co-Founder Yawn Rong said.

The announcement comes shortly after FSL, the creator of STEPN GO, revealed a collaboration with Mythos Foundation, focused on Web3 gaming and esports. This partnership will integrate Mythos Chain into FSL’s ecosystem and develop co-branded assets, enhancing user experiences across both communities.

‘Ponzinomics’ Collapsed STEPN’s Success

The second series of NFT sneakers gives STEPN GO a chance to reclaim its market share. The project’s alleged ‘Ponzinomics’ gravely affected its user base, according to a report from gaming researcher NAAVIK.

STEPN GO was banned in China amidst allegations that it used the same economic principles found in Ponzi schemes. Against this backdrop, the new user metric and revenue also dwindled. If STEPN GO has successfully reinvented its economic model, it could potentially turn things around with its latest project in collaboration with Adidas.

Notwithstanding, STEPN’s journey reflects how challenges mar the NFT sector and put it in the spotlight. Their success rate, or a shortage thereof, has become a concerning issue. As BeInCrypto reported, 96% of NFTs are considered dead.

Additionally, regulatory pressure, including a Wells Notice from the SEC against OpenSea, continues to weigh on the NFT market. Fears around this notice prompted structural changes for players like Magic Eden, with the NFT marketplace’s customers caught in the crosshairs.

Read more: OpenSea Review: Everything You Need To Know

In response, Coinbase has launched a $6 million legal defense fund, supported by backers like a16z and OpenSea, to protect NFT projects from increased scrutiny.