Ronaldinho shills Solana-based meme coin on Instagram

Key Takeaways

• Ronaldinho's Instagram endorsement boosted Water Coin's value temporarily.
• Skepticism surrounds Water Coin's legitimacy due to potential pump-and-dump risks.

Legendary footballer Ronaldinho Gaúcho recently posted a story on his Instagram account promoting the Solana-based token Water Coin (WATER) to his 76.6 million followers. The move comes after Lionel Messi’s similar post sent WATER’s value soaring almost 400% on Monday.

Both Ronaldinho’s and Messi’s stories included their images and the Water Coin mascot. It also tagged the project’s Instagram account.

Following Ronaldinho’s post, the price of Water Coin increased by 38.8% to $0.0012 within an hour, though it later fell below its peak price, CoinGecko’s data shows. Despite the decline, WATER’s value has increased by over 150% since Messi’s recent promotion .

Water Coin aims to support water sustainability projects and has outlined plans for more celebrity partnerships. Its credibility, however, remains in doubt. Several figures like YouTuber Ajay Kashyap and crypto commentator Ponga, have raised concerns about its potential as a pump-and-dump scheme.

Water Coin was not Ronaldinho’s first involvement in crypto promotion. He had reportedly promoted several projects, including meme coins like Baby Doge and World Cup Inu, which have been accused of being pump-and-dump schemes.

The football legend was also associated with the “18kRonaldinho” project in 2022. The project was alleged to be a $61 million pyramid scheme promising unrealistic daily returns.

Facing controversy and accusations of dubious practices, Ronaldinho, however, denied any wrongdoing. He asserted that he was also a victim of the unauthorized use of his likeness.

Last month, Ronaldinho took to X to express his enthusiasm for mainstream crypto adoption.

His post met with criticism from on-chain “detective” ZachXBT. ZachXBT suggested the football star’s latest pro-crypto comments may be driven by financial troubles rather than genuine interest.

Ronaldinho’s tweet was removed at the time of reporting.