Crypto companies invest $170 million in Premier League sponsorships

According to a Bloomberg report on September 7, Premier League (PL) clubs have secured a record $170 million in sponsorship deals from crypto companies for the 2024/25 season.

The rise comes as league participants face tighter restrictions on gambling sponsorships, which have traditionally been a major source of revenue for them.

Crypto sponsorships on the rise

According to the report, several major clubs have already signed major crypto deals. For example, Kraken, the leading cryptocurrency exchange, sponsors Tottenham Hotspur, Atlético Madrid of La Liga, as well as RB Leipzig of the German Bundesliga.

Meanwhile, in June 2023, reigning Premier League champions Manchester City extended their partnership with OKX for another three years in a deal that will cost the platform $70 million.

Another crypto exchange, Crypto.com, is also heavily involved in football. The company, which owns the naming rights to the former Staples Center, home to the Los Angeles Lakers and Los Angeles Clippers among others, announced in August that it would sponsor the UEFA Champions League through 2027 .

The influx of crypto sponsorship is not limited to the biggest names in the biggest leagues; Turkish team Galatasaray recently signed a two-season deal with blockchain analytics firm Arkham Intelligence, worth around $4 million, to have its logo featured on the team’s shirt sleeves .

Gambling, crypto-entry

For PL clubs, these partnerships mark a major shift in the sponsorship landscape, particularly with the impending ban on gambling adverts on the front of shirts by mid-2026. This is in addition to the 2019 “whistle blowing” ban on gambling advertisements during live matches.

In the 2023/24 season, eight teams had playing sponsorships on the front of their jerseys, collectively earning them almost $80 million per year.

However, according to Daniel McDonagh, a partner at British law firm Charles Russell Speechlys, cited in the Bloomberg report, crypto companies are now stepping in to fill the void caused by limitations on gambling sponsorship.

Some believe the move is part of efforts to improve the image of the digital assets sector following the bad press caused by the collapse of several high-profile companies, including Three Arrows Capital (3AC), Voyager Digital and FTX.