The Mercedes AMG Petronas F1 Team has signed an agreement with FTX, cryptocurrency exchange, the partnership will result in FTX branding on Mercedes F1 team cars.
The Russian Grand Prix, which will take place on September 26, 2021, will be the first opportunity to see Team Mercedes’ new FTX branding in action. The agreement will last for several seasons and will include FTX branding on partner logos at trackside and in hospitality facilities.
The FTX exchange’s creator and CEO, Sam Bankman-Fried, said the company is “thrilled” to be partnering with the current Formula One winners and seven-time Constructors’ Champions.
FTX has invested approximately $345 million in sports partnerships in order to increase its visibility to popular audiences by gaining access to fans all around the world.
Toto Wolff, Team Principal, CEO, and co-owner of the Mercedes F1 Team, is thrilled to have FTX join the team and sees exciting and new prospects for the global F1 fan base.
At a later point, NFT collections, FTX Pay, and corporate social responsibility activities will be implemented. FTX Pay is a payment platform that lets users receive payments in both fiat and cryptocurrency currencies.
Sports teams are becoming more interested in cryptocurrency
In the year 2021, sports brands and teams have begun experimenting with blockchain in novel ways. Ferruccio Lamborghini Museum began selling NFTs in August 2021, and Porsche and Motor Team McLaren followed suit.
FTX recently launched a commercial starring Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Tom Brady and his wife Gisele Bundchen, and has since become Major League Baseball’s official cryptocurrency exchange.
All umpires will wear FTX.US branding on their sleeves as part of the MLB arrangement, and FTX will be promoted across all of MLB’s media outlets.
With respect to naming rights deals, FTX recently signed a $210M naming rights deal with the e-sports organization TLM and a $135M naming rights deal with the Miami Heat’s arena, which will result in the arena being named the FTX Arena in the next NBA Season.
Kevin O’Leary, an investor and co-host of Shark Tank, has agreed to be an ambassador for FTX in a multi-year contract that will see him promote the company to his international audience.
