‘Huge validation’: Why Crypto.com is putting its name on the L.A. Lakers’ arena
BNN Bloomberg
In less than one month, cryptocurrency will make it clear to the world that the nascent sector is not going away anytime soon.
In less than one month, cryptocurrency will make it clear to the world that the nascent sector is not going away anytime soon.
As of December 25, the downtown Los Angeles arena known for decades as the Staples Centre will be renamed after the Crypto.com digital currency exchange. The company, which did not respond to interview requests, reportedly paid US$700-million to have its name plastered across the home of the NBA’s Lakers and Clippers (as well as the NHL’s Kings) for the next 20 years in a move experts say will accelerate the normalization of cryptocurrency in the minds of everyday consumers.
“These are incredibly lucrative contracts and they are always entered into with the long-term in mind,” said Chad Finkelstein, a partner at Dale & Lessmann LPP, who has worked on stadium naming rights deals in the past. “For the owners of the arena [Anschutz Entertainment Group] to grant these rights to one of the highest-profile venues in the world is a huge validation of cryptocurrency.”
Unlike so-called vice brands such as alcohol, cannabis and tobacco, Finkelstein said there is no legal reason to prevent a cryptocurrency company from putting its brand on a public venue. In fact, the Crypto.com deal marks the second time a company from that sector purchased the naming rights to a major U.S. arena, after FTX.com paid US$135 million last March to brand the home of the Miami Heat.
There is an added benefit for the crypto community in general to having a company with crypto in its name sponsor a stadium, according to Jarrett Vaughan.
