2021 Review Of Sports Business Deals: Huge Broadcasting Contracts, Stadium Naming Rights And Kit Deals Across Major Sports

In 2021, Despite the covid effect, the sports industry witnessed some of the biggest and top sports sponsorship deals in history. Mostly It’s The Cryptocurrency firms who splashed the cash most on sponsorship and endorsement deals. Meanwhile, brand likes Addidas, Puma, Nike holds their position firmly.

On the other side, Football Leagues TV rights deals also saw a 15% hike. As La Liga Signed new deals with Dazn brings the league an additional 1 billion euro compared with the previous deal.

Similarly, some brands witnessed the downfall as brands like Reebok and New Balance have dropped off considerably in the sponsorship and endorsement market over the past 12 months.

So, without any further delay, let’s take a look at the top Sports sponsorship deals that happened in 2021.

1. Manchester United and TeamViewer
2. MLS and Procter & Gamble (P&G)
3. Phoenix Mercury and Bally’s Corporation
4. Drone Racing League and Algorand
5. AEG, Formula 1 & The UFC deal with Crypto.com
6. WWE deal with NBCUniversal’s Peacock
7. NFL domestic media rights deals
8. Adidas sells Reebok to ABG
9.  Saudi-led takeover Newcastle United
10. Premier League renews US TV deal with NBC

Manchester United and TeamViewer -US$325m

In March 2021, Premier League giants Manchester United announced tech company “TeamViewer” as their principal shirt partner in a long five-year deal. The contract with TeamViewer is valued at US$325m.

The contract will run until the 2025/26 season. Compared to the deal with Chevrolet, it’s quite low as Chevrolet was paying US$559m. However, It is still the biggest only shirt deal in League history.

MLS and Procter & Gamble -US$100m

In April 2021, MLS signed multi-year sponsorship deals with Consumer Good Giants P&G. The deal was signed ahead of the 2021 season.

The Company will pay the league US$100m over a five-year period to promote its brands like Old Spice, Charmin and bound, Gillette, etc. However, the exact amount was not disclosed by the authorities.

P&G will also sponsor the Leagues Cup, an annual competition between MLS and Liga MX clubs, and the Campeones Cup, which sees the Mexican champions take on the winners of the MLS Cup.

Phoenix Mercury and Bally’s Corporation -US$66m

The deal is not about money but made the headline due to its duration. In June 2021, Phoenix Mercury announced Bally’s Corporation as their exclusive sports betting, partner.

The deal was signed for 15 long years, the Largest official team sponsorship in the history of women’s sports. According to the deal, they will pay US$66m.

Drone Racing League and Algorand –US$100m

In September 2021, A New York-based Startup company bangs the deal with cryptocurrency firm Algorand worth US$100m for five years.

As a part of the deal, the league will release tickets to racing events, non-fungible tokens (NFTs), and other fun collectibles on Algorand.

Moreover with Algorand has the naming rights to the Drone Racing League’s championship series.

AEG, Formula 1 & The UFC deal with Crypto.com

In November 2021, Staples Center which plays host to Lakers, Sparks, and kings, changed its name after the owner AEG signed a major deal with Crypto.com. The Deal is worth US$700million over 20 years of partnership. The venue’s new name is now Crypto.com

Cyrpto.com not only signed a deal with AEG but in previous months of 2021, they struck deals with Formula 1 & The UFC also.

Its deal with Formula one was signed in June, worth US$100m. And Deal with UFC was signed in July and worth US$175m.

According to the deal with UFC and Formula one, cyrpto.com will procure branded presence Octagon and Formula Track during all PPV and races. It will also Include live Broadcasting on channels.

WWE deal with NBCUniversal’s Peacock -US$1billion

In January 2021, World Wrestling Enterinatment signed a deal with NBCUniversal’s Peacock worth US$1billion.

It came as a surprise for everyone as the WWE decides to shut down its OTT platform service and the option to stream matches on Peacock.

It’s a five-year-duration deal that will end in 2026.

NFL domestic media rights deals -US$110 billion

In March 2021, The National Football League (NFL) has confirmed long-term broadcast rights agreements with its domestic media partners CBS, ESPN/ABC, Fox, NBC, and Amazon.

The new deal was signed between the broadcasting partners. The deal will cover TV and digital platforms as well as additional rights and will run for 11 seasons from 2023 to 2033.

The deal is reported to be worth around US$110 billion in total.

Adidas sells Reebok to ABG -US$2.5bn

In 2006, the German sports brand Addidas purchased Reebok for US$3.1bn. However, in recent years, the brand lost its appeal and run short in the race.

New brands takeover over sports, So in order to see the profit, Adidas sell out the Reebok to Authentic Brands Group (ABG) for US$2.5 billion.

Furthermore, Since acquiring Rebbok in 2006, Adidas has sold off US$469.5 million worth of assets involved in the original deal. 

Saudi-led takeover Newcastle United -US$408M

The deal finally happened in October 2021 after it was called off on so many occasions. The Saudi-led takeover of top-flight English soccer club Newcastle United in October 2021 and has been approved by the Premier League.

The deal was worth US$408m which meant the end of Mike Ashley’s tenure as owner.

Premier League TV Rights deal with NBC -US$2.7bn

The premier league is the most popular and financially stable league in football. Hence it proved again why it got the status as the Premier League signed a new TV rights deal With NBC to telecast premier league matches in the US.

The deal is worth US$2.7bn. The deal will end in 2028. NBC is paying double the amount to telecast matches than the previous broadcaster.

The agreement with NBC covers all 380 Premier League matches in a season and runs to 2028.

This deal stands at the top sports sponsorship deals of 2021.

FAQs Regarding Top Sports Sponsorship Deals.