Around the world, advertising on the front of professional football jerseys is a fairly common practice except for in the U.S. Don't look now, but the Americans who call the game of football — soccer — and play in a professional league called Major Leage Soccer will be donning uniforms with advertising on the front of their jerseys as well. The 11-year-old Major League Soccer will join NASCAR as the only two American professional leagues to permit prominent advertising on their shirts. The practice, which has been long accepted in professional football leagues in Europe, Asia and Latin America, will give Major League Soccer another revenue stream. According to the Wall Street Journal, Major League Soccer has established a minimum of $500,000 a year for uniform sponsorship, with the league collecting $200,000. With salaries in other professional American sports leagues escalating to insurmountable heights, uniform sponsorships may be the next wave of revenue stream for the NBA, NFL and Major League Baseball. American franchises have sold the naming rights of their stadiums and, if possible, luxury boxes to corporations for that extra dollar. So, why not do what the rest of the world does and sell uniform sponsorships? Time will tell. For now, Major League Soccer has opened the doors for uniform sponsorships, now all it has to do is sell them ... — Gerald Magpily
See related article from Sportbusiness.com
Continue reading below
