Fansided

Philadelphia 76ers sell first ad for NBA jersey to Stub Hub

By Dan Schmelzer

Feb 26, 2016; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Philadelphia 76ers forward Nerlens Noel (4) celebrates with center Jahlil Okafor (8) after a score against the Washington Wizards during the second quarter at Wells Fargo Center. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports
Feb 26, 2016; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Philadelphia 76ers forward Nerlens Noel (4) celebrates with center Jahlil Okafor (8) after a score against the Washington Wizards during the second quarter at Wells Fargo Center. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports /
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The Philadelphia 76ers become the first NBA team to sell an ad on their jersey, selling the space to Stub Hub.

On Monday morning, the Philadelphia 76ers and event ticket provider Stub Hub announced a partnership where the company will advertise on the 76ers’ game jerseys. The Stub Hub patch will be on the above the team’s name on the front of the jersey beginning in the 2017-2018 NBA season.

Earlier this year, the NBA approved ads on jerseys for a three-year “pilot program” starting in the 2017-18 season, and the 76ers are the first team to announce an official partnership for the jersey ads. The 76ers are not only the first team to do this in the NBA, they are the first to sell ad space on a jersey of the four major sports in the United States.

The small and simple logo looks nice on the 76ers’ jersey, as they did a nice job of implementing it with their color scheme.

"Big Betsy hooked it up with the super clean @StubHub patch. #StubHubSixers[  » https://t.co/MmFmSpdRWd ]https://t.co/M0BrOklWS5— Philadelphia 76ers (@Sixers) May 16, 2016"

As long as other teams follow suit with this nice and simple look, I do not think NBA fans are going to have much of a problem with this. Sure people resist change at first, but this an opportunity for the league and teams to create revenue without harming their brand or the product on the court. I do not see the downside here.

The 76ers (or any NBA team interested in a sponsorship on their uniform) will keep half of the money from StubHub with the other half going to split among the players around the league.

Also, the 76ers’ jerseys being sold nationally will not have the corporate sponsor on them, but the 76ers will have the Stub Hub option on jerseys bought locally.

With an extra way to create revenue, uniform sponsors are likely to become the norm in the NBA and other US professional sports. As long as the changes are subtle and fit well like the 76ers’ change, I doubt the professional leagues will get much backlash from the fans.

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