Shutdown Corner - NFL

Shutdown Corner

Wed Jun 03, 2009 11:31 am EDT

Will NFL teams ever sell ad space on jerseys?

By Chris Chase

For as much as leagues, teams and players sell out to the highest bidder, it's pretty remarkable that the the NFL, NBA and NHL have yet to start selling advertising space on its uniforms.

Soccer teams in Europe have been doing it for years. NASCAR drivers would be unrecognizable without their dozens of logo patches. Even a  WNBA team is joining the fray. Now it looks like the NFL is taking baby steps toward that end.

Darren Rovell writes on his Sports Biz blog that NFL teams are now allowed to sell sponsorship patches on their practice jerseys. Can regular season jerseys be too far behind?

It's the logical next step, right? Advertisers are constantly looking at ways to increase brand awareness, which is why we have FedEx Field and The Tostitos Fiesta Bowl. In an age of decreased attention spans, DVRs and countless other objects, throwing a logo on a Cowboys jersey could be one of the best ways for a brand to raise (or sustain) its awareness level.

Yeah, the NFL puts up an air of integrity by refusing to sell those rights, but that's only because they haven't received the right offer. With stadium sponsorships flailing and the Super Bowl losing major advertising partners last year, adding a logo to jerseys makes sense for both advertisers and teams. For the brands, it gives their company an identity. They'd have their logo not just on TV and in pictures, but on people wearing the jerseys in public. (I was at a bar watching the Champions League final last week and a good 75 percent of the people were wearing the Manchester United jerseys with AIG on the chest.) For the teams and the league, they get the thing they desire most: coin.

Sports leagues, including the NFL, seem to be clinging to some phony integrity about keeping the jersey a sacred place, as if selling the naming rights to the NFL combine or the Super Bowl pre-game show is somehow dignified.

As the PTI guys pointed out this week, nobody ever thought The New York Times or Washington Post would sell ad space on their front pages. But, desperate times call for desperate measures. It seems strange to think about the 49ers wearing an Apple logo or the Redskins rocking the Discovery Channel globe, but that day may be coming sooner than we think. It just makes too much sense.

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58 Comments

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  1. scoobysnaks
    1. Posted by scoobysnaks Wed Jun 03, 2009 11:49 am EDT

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    i would certainly hope not.
  2. The VZA
    2. Posted by The VZA Wed Jun 03, 2009 11:59 am EDT

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    Not only will this eventually happen - IT ALREADY has! What are all those Nike/Reebok logos pasted all over uniforms? Furthermore, I remember when stadiums were just stadiums and not corporate trademarks. The next step? Get ready to ditch city names... hello Bank of America Panthers! Go American Airlines Dolphins!
    Remember this prophecy....
  3. Tom
    3. Posted by Tom Wed Jun 03, 2009 11:59 am EDT

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    Yes, AIG sponsors ManU....and how did that work out for AIG?
    I think in soccer it makes sense, no commercials. But in a 4 hour game with commercial breaks every 10 minutes and the announcers urging us to watch "CSI" or "Dancing with the Stars" or "The Mentalist" every time there's a break in action, I think we should get a pass on the jersey ads.
  4. the_strandman
    4. Posted by the_strandman Wed Jun 03, 2009 12:00 pm EDT

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    So....the NFL isn't getting advertising on their jerseys but yet this idiot felt the need to write a hypothetical piece?
    Thanks for waste that minute of my life.
  5. Jose M
    5. Posted by Jose M Wed Jun 03, 2009 12:05 pm EDT

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    Hell no. I would never again buy a jersey. I do not want a Tostitos logo on my NFL jersey.
  6. JohnnyFootballHero
    6. Posted by JohnnyFootballHero Wed Jun 03, 2009 12:06 pm EDT

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    the more pressing question is, will nfl coaches ever stop looking like rejects from a dated SNL skit and dress in designer suits, the way their soccer compatriots do? it's pretty hard to take andy reid seriously when he looks like the world's worst rapper.
  7. Sean M
    7. Posted by Sean M Wed Jun 03, 2009 12:22 pm EDT

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    Like Jose said. Doing this will make your $200 authentic jersey look like the one given away on Taco Bell Jersey Night.
    Here's a thought, cut down expenses first. Slash the salary cap in half.
    Every other business in the world knows there's 2 ways to stay in the black. Raise revenue and cut expenses. But sports leagues never seem to want to try the latter. They'd rather prostitute their teams, stadiums, and now jerseys in every way imaginable.
  8. Brett P
    8. Posted by Brett P Wed Jun 03, 2009 12:35 pm EDT

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    I will quit watching. It is. tacky and trashy
  9. Brett P
    9. Posted by Brett P Wed Jun 03, 2009 12:37 pm EDT

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    $200? Where can you get one for that price anymore? Try $300 with tax!!!!
  10. Travis
    10. Posted by Travis Wed Jun 03, 2009 12:49 pm EDT

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    Probably not, because, for the NFL, the player names are advertising.
  11. Scott E
    11. Posted by Scott E Wed Jun 03, 2009 12:59 pm EDT

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    "it's pretty hard to take andy reid seriously when he looks like the world's worst rapper" Thank you, Johnny. That just made my day. LOL
    I can't wait for my new Redskins jersey with Howie Long's face imprinted all over it with the Chevy? truck logo....
  12. Hambone
    12. Posted by Hambone Wed Jun 03, 2009 1:05 pm EDT

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    Most teams don't have anything on the front of the jersey anyway. I could see them reducing the size of the front number and putting something between that and the collar.
    As far as reducing the salary cap, they can't do that. It's called a collective bargaining agreement. The owners can't just say "we're going to slash your portion of the revenue, because we want to increase our own revenue". As long as the NFL keeps making that much money, the players will keep making that much money. Yeah, you can also increase profit by cutting expenses, but it's easier for them to increase revenue, so why deal with the negotiation hassle?
    The league will do whatever it thinks it can do to make money, as long as they know everyone will keep watching. I refuse to believe that anyone who reads a football blog, and takes the time to comment, would stop watching because teams started putting advertising on the jerseys. I personally think that within one season, I'd probably be used to it. The camera is usually zoomed out anyway. I also don't buy jerseys, because they're way too expensive, and owning them wouldn't really make me enjoy the game more than I do now.
  13. Scott E
    13. Posted by Scott E Wed Jun 03, 2009 1:08 pm EDT

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    Now that they've implemented the No Wedge Rule and the restrictions on offensive player's blocking, they've cleared the way for Massengill and Kotex ads on their jerseys. How sweet is that?
  14. Hambone
    14. Posted by Hambone Wed Jun 03, 2009 1:09 pm EDT

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    @The VZA: That's already how Japanese baseball team names work.
  15. ksatts18
    15. Posted by ksatts18 Wed Jun 03, 2009 1:15 pm EDT

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    I would disown football. Ads on jerseys would be too embarrassing and pathetic for me to handle.
  16. J B
    16. Posted by J B Wed Jun 03, 2009 1:15 pm EDT

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    Go ahead and put sponsor logos on the jerseys. I listen to radio broadcasts except for the Super Bowl so I can avoid the ads about TV shows.
    Long live Westwood One. Now if they could get rid of the guy with the fake deep voice doing the intros.
  17. Chon Dawg
    17. Posted by Chon Dawg Wed Jun 03, 2009 1:17 pm EDT

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    Forget about the perceived "air of integrity" or whatever that nonsense that was spouted up above. The simple fact is the jerseys would be hideous. Who want's to buy ugly as hell uni's? I know I would never buy a jersey with AIG across the front. If the NFL started adding ads to their logos I wouldn't buy another one ever again.
  18. 619RAIDER.
    18. Posted by 619RAIDER. Wed Jun 03, 2009 1:23 pm EDT

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    the chargers will be sponsered by vagicil...
  19. Hambone
    19. Posted by Hambone Wed Jun 03, 2009 1:40 pm EDT

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    Everyone's comments make me wonder if they would continue to sell replica jerseys without ads, as that seems to be the line most of us have drawn.
  20. J B
    20. Posted by J B Wed Jun 03, 2009 2:08 pm EDT

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    The Chargers sponsored by Vagicil made me laugh. But the Raiders would be sponsored by BenGay and Metamucil.
  21. enr p
    21. Posted by enr p Wed Jun 03, 2009 2:23 pm EDT

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    Strandman - Don't be an idiot. Read the article TWICE if you must. Advertising on practice jerseys only - which by the way, who's watching practices anyway ?
  22. enr p
    22. Posted by enr p Wed Jun 03, 2009 2:24 pm EDT

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    Coaches wearing suits like european soccer?
    ha ! Tell that to Mr Bella-chick..
  23. Scott E
    23. Posted by Scott E Wed Jun 03, 2009 2:34 pm EDT

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    Hey, how did you get those Kotex Cowgirls tickets?
    Pulled some strings....
  24. MAY
    24. Posted by MAY Wed Jun 03, 2009 2:48 pm EDT

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    IM TIRED OF ALL THESE ADS!! if nobody is buying you stupid product, then dont even make ads! nobody will care!! ads on the youtube videos are bad enough. what is this world coming to?
  25. 619RAIDER
    25. Posted by 619RAIDER Wed Jun 03, 2009 3:02 pm EDT

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    how about preperation h presented by your san digo chargers!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!lol

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