Just a few days ago, it was revealed that NBA owners were likely going to pass a policy this week to allow teams to put advertisements on their jerseys starting with the 2017-18 season. Now, that rumor has become a reality.
Sports Illustrated Matt Dollinger released an official statement from the league, which says that the “NBA Board of Governors approved the sale of jersey sponsorships, beginning with the 2017-18 season, as part of a three-year pilot program.”
The sponsorship patch will be relatively small, at 2.5 inches by 2.5 inches, on the top left side of the uniform. Adjustments can be made depending on the size of the sponsor’s logo (time to beef those up if you’re a big company).
Teams will be able to negotiate the deals for the sponsorships themselves.
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NBA Commissioner Adam Silver included a statement of his own in the release.
“Jersey sponsorships provide deeper engagement with partners looking to build a unique association with our teams and the additional investment will help grow the game in new exciting ways,” said Silver. “We’re always thinking about innovative ways the NBA can remain competitive in a global marketplace, and we are excited to see the results of this three-year trial.”
Fans did not respond positively to the idea a few years back, but it appears that the league is trying to make a compromise by making the advertisements fairly small.
Large companies will have to spend millions to get their logos on NBA jerseys, especially in bigger markets. This does seem to give those teams a bit of a competitive advantage, but the cap will still provide balance when it comes to spending on rosters.
The league also said that retail jerseys from the league itself won’t feature the ads, but the teams can choose whether or not they want to sell uniforms with the patches included.
With the new TV deal set to kick in this coming year, the NBA, already one of the most lucrative professional sports leagues in the world, is ready to boost its revenues to even greater heights.
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