The valuation of the Italian National Team Fan Token ($ITA) climbed 37% in the past week ahead of key World Cup qualifying fixtures against Moldova and Norway.

With direct qualification from the group still possible, $ITA trading exploded in the lead up to the upcoming matches, with trade volume increasing by ten-fold in the past few days alone.

Italy National Team Fan Token ($ITA) Jumps 37%

The value of the Italy National Team Fan Token ($ITA) increased 37% over the course of the past week, climbing from a spot price of $0.216 to $0.296 at time of publication – and continuing to rise.

Trade volume for $ITA was as high as $140,000 at the start of the week, before dropping back down to around $60,000, before increasing by more than 10x to $653,000 on Nov. 09.

The price surge of the past week helped restore $ITA to very near its monthly high of $0.31, which was recorded on Oct. 10.

World Cup matches have proven to be a strong catalyst for national team Fan Token growth in the past, and this week $ITA was no exception.

Italy’s second position in the qualifying group behind leaders Norway leaves the team still able to qualify directly, assuming Italy can win their remaining games and hope Norway lose one of their remaining matches. Otherwise, Italy will have to win a playoff match to secure qualification.

Italy Manager Names Final Squad

Last week Italy manager Gennaro Gattuso named his final 27-man squad for the upcoming matches against Moldova and Norway, and some players were notable by their absence.

Liverpool winger Enrico Chiesa was excluded from the squad, as was Udinese forward Nicolò Zaniolo. Other notable absentees included Napoli striker Lorenzo Lucca, who has fallen behind Rasmus Hojlund at club level with Napoli this season, and Tottenham left-back Destiny Udogie, who has missed much of the season due to knee injury.

The final Italy squad showed a blend of experience and youth, and included one new call-up in the form of Cagliari goalkeeper, Elia Caprile.

Final Italy Squad:

Goalkeepers: Elia Caprile (Cagliari), Marco Carnesecchi (Atalanta), Gianluigi Donnarumma (Manchester City), Guglielmo Vicario (Tottenham).

Defenders: Alessandro Bastoni (Inter), Raoul Bellanova (Atalanta), Alessandro Buongiorno (Napoli), Riccardo Calafiori (Arsenal), Andrea Cambiaso (Juventus), Giovanni Di Lorenzo (Napoli), Federico Dimarco (Inter), Matteo Gabbia (Milan), Gianluca Mancini (Roma).

Midfielders: Nicolò Barella (Inter), Bryan Cristante (Roma), Davide Frattesi (Inter), Manuel Locatelli (Juventus), Samuele Ricci (Milan), Sandro Tonali (Newcastle).

Forwards: Francesco Pio Esposito (Inter), Moise Kean (Fiorentina), Riccardo Orsolini (Bologna), Matteo Politano (Napoli), Giacomo Raspadori (Atletico Madrid), Mateo Retegui (Al-Qadsiah), Gianluca Scamacca (Atalanta), Mattia Zaccagni (Lazio).

Greg Thomson: Fan Tokens Market Reporter