Crypto deals get ugly for teams, leagues

FTX, the cryptocurrency exchange that has advertised on MLB umpires’ left sleeves and right chest since the 2021 All-Star Game, always seemed like an odd choice for MLB to take on as its first on-field uniform advertiser. First, crypto is still a new and volatile product, so why would you want to hitch the wagon to something so sketchy? Also, crypto is often used to hide illegal transactions, which seems like the last thing you want to associate with judges. I mean, if someone wanted to bribe a corrupt ump, they would definitely do it with crypto.

Now it turns out that Texas – a state not usually known for its strict regulatory policies – is investigating whether FTX and its CEO may have violated the state’s securities laws. What a surprise. Perhaps FTX will call Rob Manfred as a character witness, which seems like a perfect match.

This is not the first crypto-related embarrassment that teams and leagues have experienced recently. In fact, it’s not even the first to involve FTX! The company was supposed to be the LA Angels’ sleeve advertiser next season, but reportedly pulled out of the deal last June when the crypto market fell. Given the Texas investigation, perhaps the Angels should consider themselves lucky. (According to the same linked article, another crypto firm pulled out of a similar uni advertising deal with the NBA’s Washington Wizards around the same time.)

A similar situation appears to have played out in Portland, where the Trail Blazers’ relationship with crypto exchange StormX has gone south in a hurry. Last season, the Blazers proudly introduced StormX as the NBA’s first crypto patch partner uni advertiser. The ad deal was reportedly for five years, but that turned out to be a bit optimistic, as the Blazers terminated the deal without explanation a few weeks ago and are now going ad-free — and presumably without the revenue they had budgeted for — while they look for a new uni advertiser . (Amusingly, the players were still wearing the StormX patch for their annual Media Day photo shoot just four days before the team pulled the plug on the ad deal, likely rendering the photos useless.)

And then there is Crypto.com, the exchange that bought the naming rights to the Lakers’ arena last December. Less than a year later, Crypto.com has gone through a serious round of layoffs (which the company initially characterized as amounting to 5% of the workforce, although the truth turns out to be at least 40%) and is now facing possible bankruptcy. According to this report:

In addition to withdrawing its $495 million UEFA Champions League sponsorship last month, the company has also withdrawn its sponsorship with Los Angeles-based soccer team Angel FC, said The age of the ad. It has also withdrawn from the sponsorship deal with the esports league of the streaming service Twitch.

No word yet on what Crypto.com’s declining fortunes might mean for 76ers, but it seems like something to keep an eye on.

Advertising on uniforms and stadium/arena names is distasteful enough without involving this industry. I understand that anything crypto or blockchain related is the current flavor of the month or whatever (remember how MLB tried to bribe me to promote their NFTs a year ago?) but you’d think billion dollar leagues and teams can be a little more careful about who they do business with. Instead, it looks like they’re going to end up with a lot of egg on their faces. Serve them right.

(Thanks to our own Anthony Emerson for alerting me to the FTX investigation.)

POINT! Premium preview

My Premium article on Substack this week is an interview with Daniel Horine, the artist behind the excellent Pop Fly Pop Shop, who has found the ultimate nostalgic sweet spot by combining retro sports and retro comic art. I’ve been meaning to interview him for a while now and it was great fun.

My Premium Substack subscribers will receive this article in their inbox tomorrow morning. If you have not yet subscribed, you can do so here. (Didn’t you hear about my switch from Bulletin to Substack? More details on that, including the “Pay What You Want” subscription option, can be found here.)

The (Pot) Hole Truth

One of the more disturbing examples of advertising creep in recent years was a 2018 initiative in which Domino’s pizza filled potholes in various US municipalities in exchange for an advertisement being painted on the repaired road surface (above left). I thought of it when longtime reader Jason Hillyer told me about a Chicago artist named Jim Bachor who loves filled potholes with beautiful mosaic reproductions of famous paintings (like Hopper’s Nighthawks, Upper right). It’s a really fun project – more pictures and info here. And it really highlights how gross the Domino’s thing was by comparison.

(Big thanks to Jason Hillyer for this one.)