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ASG jersey deal a step, not a solution

The NBA’s plan to put Kia’s logo on All-Star Game jerseys in 2016 and in 2017 is seen as a major step forward in the league’s long-standing effort to put advertising patches on team jerseys.

But last week’s news about the coming All-Star Games does not immediately clear for the league many of the hurdles that have existed for it since 2011, when NBA officials first actively discussed the idea of putting advertising on game jerseys.

The All-Star Game is a league-controlled event. Having ads on team jerseys for the regular season is a more complex matter. So while there is a consensus among owners that jersey ads should be sold, the league must still work through many of the key issues related to making a regular-season ad presence happen. Among those topics: Would teams or would the league sell the inventory? And, an even more complicated question: How would teams share the resulting revenue, given that the deals would vary in value by market?

“This [Kia deal] is smart because it is a toe in the water and the NBA can see how the fans react,” said Dominic Curran, CEO of Synergy USA, which represents brands in soccer jersey deals, including with the English Premier League. “These are on an all-star jersey, so it is not imbued with as much emotion as a team jersey. This gives them the ability to play with it on a jersey that is not imbued with emotion. The challenge is that it has the potential to go unnoticed.”

The NBA tested a jersey patch during the 2012 Finals.
Photo by: GETTY IMAGES
The subject of jersey advertising was discussed at the most recent NBA board of governors meeting, Oct. 22-23 in New York, but no formal proposal was presented to the board. Instead, the league’s planning committee, headed by Philadelphia 76ers owner Josh Harris, continues to work on creating a viable proposal.

According to one source familiar with the discussions, the committee is working on a proposal with the goal of having it ready for the NBA’s spring board of governors meeting in April. Owners would have to approve the proposal. The discussions also look to align with Nike preparing to put its own logo on game jerseys as part of its new eight-year, $1 billion deal with the NBA.

Nike is replacing Adidas as the league’s merchandise partner beginning in the 2017-18 season. Adidas’ logo currently appears on team warmups but not jerseys.

While the subject of jersey advertising has been actively discussed by NBA officials since 2011, and the league tested how a patch might look with a league-branded mark during the 2012 NBA Finals, the process has been slowed by the various implementation issues. The NBA tabled the matter in late 2012, but NBA Commissioner Adam Silver last year said it is inevitable that ads would appear on NBA uniforms.

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