Licensing & Merchandising
Manchester City suspends mysterious NFT deal with 3Key
Premier League side Manchester City FC has suspended its regional sponsorship deal with mysterious cryptocurrency start-up 3Key while it tries to establish more information about the company
MLB Cleveland Guardians formalize identity transition
Previously delayed merchandise sales set to start at club's team shop
Barcelona cancels Ownix NFT deal after consultant arrested, renews Serveto agreement
FC Barcelona has cancelled an agreement with NFT marketplace Ownix with immediate effect after a consultant working for the company was arrested over allegations of fraud and sexual offenses
Slash B Slash named first Korean brand to sell officially licensed LaLiga products
LaLiga has struck a deal with South Korean mobile accessories maker Slash B Slash which will see the brand produce and sell officially licensed LaLiga products in the country
NBA plans to open six new NBA Stores in Brazil
League looks to ramp up its retail presence in South American country
Indians free to adopt Guardians nickname after trademark lawsuit is resolved
Major League Baseball's Cleveland Indians are finally free to adopt the new Guardians nickname for the 2022 season after a trademark legal battle with a local roller derby team with the same name was resolved
MLB Guardians merchandise sales postponed amid lawsuit
United States-based sports retailers were reportedly forced to postpone a sales debut of new Cleveland Guardians merchandise on November 15 without any explanation from Major League Baseball's Cleveland…
Panini retains Premier League licensing deal
Panini has agreed an extension to its Premier League official sticker and trading card licence
Drone Racing League partners with Skillz for new mobile game
Title represents further push to simulate drone racing for fans
FIGC joins Italian cryptocurrency rush with Chiliz deal
Blockchain provider Chiliz has signed with the Italian Football Federation (FIGC) to launch a '$ITA' fan token on the fan engagement and rewards app Socios.com
Fung Group men’s care products strikes NBA China licensing deal
NBA China has reached a multi-year brand licensing agreement for men's care products with the Chinese sports and health business section of the Fung Group conglomerate
Barcelona turns to IMG to develop licensing programme in Southeast Asia
Spanish LaLiga club Barcelona has appointed the IMG agency as its master licensee to develop a consumer products programme for fans in the Southeast Asia region
The Memento Group to distribute UFC memorabilia in IMG-brokered deal
The Ultimate Fighting Championship has agreed a multi-year deal making The Memento Group its global distributor of officially licensed UFC memorabilia
Binance becomes FC Porto back-of-shirt sponsor, launches club fan token
Portuguese Primeira Liga side FC Porto has agreed a deal with cryptocurrency provider Binance to become the team’s 'Official Fan Token Partner' and back-of-shirt sponsor for the 2021-22 season.
FIDE claims world first with launch of NFT marketplace
The International Chess Federation (FIDE) has agreed a deal with TON Labs to launch the sport’s first global NFT marketplace.
New England Revolution unveils new crest after dumping ‘Crayon Flag’ logo
New England Revolution has unveiled a new crest and brand identity for the 2022 Major League Soccer season after dumping the club's iconic "Crayon Flag" logo.
Uefa seeks master licensee, retailers for national team tournaments
A sales process has been launched for certain licensing and marketing rights to various Uefa national team tournaments taking place between 2023 and 2028
Faze Technologies lands ICC’s NFT contract
The International Cricket Council has appointed US-based company Faze Technologies to create exclusive digital collectibles of the greatest moments from its events