With good times, good results are often dealt. With tough times, the road can get bumpier. Look no further than crypto sports sponsorships as a prime example; after a year of new sports sponsorship entrants through one of the fastest-growing categories in major league sponsorship deals, this year has seen the market dry up with new players.
That could prove to be unfortunately timed for sponsorship-seeking teams and leagues. New reports this week have emerged that FTX, often mentioned in the sports sponsorship chatter lately, stepped away from talks around a potential jersey patch deal with the Los Angeles during the current market decline.
The MLB and NBA have been two of the most active leagues in the U.S. when it comes to engaging with crypto and blockchain firms. Both have official league-wide crypto exchange partners (FTX serving as the MLB’s official partner), and the MLB’s Washington Nationals even had a premium sponsorship deal with Terra Luna, which saw a nearly $40M up-front payment that now leaves question marks around how the Nationals should proceed.
Current deals with established players are unlikely to fall through in the months ahead, even if prices of mainstream cryptos continue to slide or remain stagnant. However, new deal expectations should be tempered until the market returns to greener pastures.
