Last season, the NBA claimed that 22 of the teams had lost money, and now the league and commissioner David Stern have revealed that the majority of teams will again lose their butts in 2012. Thankfully, the result won’t be another lockout, because profits aren’t expected to increase for three more years. Well, fingers crossed anyway.
Unfortunately, there will be repercussions as the league and owners of the small and middle market teams that seem to be bleeding the most cash struggle to find the best idea on how to make some extra coin while remaining competitive. First up? Selling ad space on team jerseys. Hell, the WNBA already started, so why wouldn’t the owners put that on the agenda for next month’s meeting?
A study released last year by Horizon Media calculated that a brand logo across the middle of an NBA team’s jersey occupying 3.5 percent of the TV screen would produce $31.18 million in exposure value.
However, the study did not factor in ancillary exposure on highlights and news shows, nor did it account for any online exposure.
“Jersey ads are one of the last pieces of inventory that club marketers haven’t been able to sell, and for a local sponsor they could be a real boon, since it would give them exposure with a team at home and away,” said Michael Neuman, managing partner of Horizon’s Scout Sports and Entertainment. (Via Sporting News)
A lot of people are going to roll their eyes at this inevitable evolutionary step in sports business, but it’s really not that bad. In fact, I spoke with some league insiders who already had the prototype for the league’s first advertising deals, and the jersey really doesn’t look that bad at all…
