The Philadelphia 76ers have today (Monday) become the first franchise in North American major league sport to adopt jersey sponsorship after agreeing a deal with online ticket exchange StubHub.
The 76ers are the first NBA team to declare a jersey sponsor after the basketball league last month confirmed that it would permit the sale of jersey sponsorships as part of a three-year pilot program running from 2017-18 to 2019-20.
Terms of the 76ers deal with StubHub were not disclosed, but the franchise said the StubHub patch will feature the brand’s recently launched new logo and appear on the front left of Sixers’ game jerseys starting in the 2017-18 season.
ESPN.com said the team has agreed a deal covering all three seasons of the pilot programme at $5m (€4.4m) a year, with the option to extend the contract with StubHub should the NBA continue to allow the 2½-by-2½-inch logo patch to be on the jerseys beyond 2019-20.
Today’s announcement comes after StubHub in February made its first major move into the primary ticketing marketplace through a partnership with the 76ers. The agreement, which named StubHub the official ticketing partner of the 76ers, coincided with the company revealing details of a first-of-its-kind platform that it hopes will revolutionise the online ticketing market, starting with the 2016-17 season. The new platform represents a change in direction for the eBay-owned StubHub, which currently specialises in ticket resales.
Commenting on its jersey sponsorship deal with the franchise, StubHub president Scott Cutler said in a statement: “Since day one, StubHub has been a pioneer and innovator within the live entertainment ecosystem and we could not be more excited to join the Philadelphia 76ers in making history with this ground-breaking partnership.
“The Philadelphia 76ers are not only a beloved global brand, they also serve as incredible partners and collaborators for StubHub – and we look forward to continuously innovating and improving the fan experience together.”