In a legal blow to Cristiano Ronaldo, the famed Portuguese soccer star, the judge overseeing the $1 billion class action lawsuit against him has rejected his motion to dismiss the case. The lawsuit, filed in Florida, accuses Ronaldo of endorsing Binance, which allegedly led investors into making costly and risky investments.

Ronaldo's Motion Denied in Binance NFT Lawsuit

Judge Roy Altman's ruling, issued on May 4, followed a request from the plaintiffs to stay proceedings until a ruling on a motion to compel arbitration. Simultaneously, the judge denied Ronaldo's motion to dismiss the case, stating: "We deny without prejudice the Defendant's 29 motion to dismiss."

The lawsuit revolves around Ronaldo's promotion of Binance, particularly in relation to a collection of non-fungible Fungible Fungibility is a term that describes how interchangeable a certain asset is with other assets of the same kind.If an asset is fungible, one unit of that asset is interchangeable with another unit of that asset. Of note, fungibility differs from liquidity. A good is said to be liquid if it can be easily exchanged for money or another good. However, a good is fungible if one unit of the good is substantially equivalent to another unit of the same good of the same quality at the same time and place Fungibility is a term that describes how interchangeable a certain asset is with other assets of the same kind.If an asset is fungible, one unit of that asset is interchangeable with another unit of that asset. Of note, fungibility differs from liquidity. A good is said to be liquid if it can be easily exchanged for money or another good. However, a good is fungible if one unit of the good is substantially equivalent to another unit of the same good of the same quality at the same time and place Read this Term tokens (NFTs) launched in partnership with the soccer star in November 2022, called "CR7." Through social media endorsements and other promotional activities, Ronaldo encouraged fans to invest in Binance, promising rewards and emphasizing the potential of NFT investments.

Cristiano Ronaldo Suffers Legal Blow For Promoting ‘Unsafe’ CR7 NFTs by Cryptocurrency Exchange Binance#CR7 | #CristianoRonaldo | #Cryptocurency https://t.co/aBXitJjvU3

— LatestLY (@latestly) May 8, 2024

Back in November 2022, Finance Magnates reported that Ronaldo, was set to unveil his inaugural non-fungible token (NFT) collection exclusively on the Binance NFT marketplace. This launch marks the culmination of a multi-year partnership deal between the Portuguese star and Binance, initiated nearly five months ago.

Binance announced that the collection aims to provide Ronaldo's fans with an introduction to Web3 through the realm of NFTs. The partnership aimed to facilitate broader blockchain understanding while also showcasing Binance's role in building Web3 infrastructure for the sports and entertainment sector.

Arbitration Stay Granted in Binance Endorsement Lawsuit

Ronaldo's endorsements of Binance extended to his Instagram account, where he frequently touted the exchange Exchange An exchange is known as a marketplace that supports the trading of derivatives, commodities, securities, and other financial instruments.Generally, an exchange is accessible through a digital platform or sometimes at a tangible address where investors organize to perform trading. Among the chief responsibilities of an exchange would be to uphold honest and fair-trading practices. These are instrumental in making sure that the distribution of supported security rates on that exchange are effectiv An exchange is known as a marketplace that supports the trading of derivatives, commodities, securities, and other financial instruments.Generally, an exchange is accessible through a digital platform or sometimes at a tangible address where investors organize to perform trading. Among the chief responsibilities of an exchange would be to uphold honest and fair-trading practices. These are instrumental in making sure that the distribution of supported security rates on that exchange are effectiv Read this Term and its associated products. Despite the legal action, Ronaldo's publicist has not yet provided comment on the matter.

The plaintiffs in the lawsuit are seeking damages exceeding $1 billion, alleging that Ronaldo's endorsements led them into making investments that resulted in financial losses. Their request for the case to be stayed for arbitration, which would involve a third party resolving the dispute, has been granted by Judge Altman.