NYSportsJournalism.com - NBA's Clippers Sign Milestone Deal With Bumble

By Barry Janoff

March 6, 2018: The Los Angeles Clippers have signed a landmark deal naming social-media relationship company Bumble a team marketing partner, including a logo patch on player jerseys.

The alliance is considered a milestone not because the Clippers are the 20th NBA team to sign a jersey-patch pact but because of the companies involved.

Bumble is led by founder and CEO Whitney Wolfe Herd and other women, with a primary dating app that requires women to make the first steps in any potential female-male chat and/or personal or professional networking relationship.

Since its launch in 2014, Bumble has grown to include than 26 million users.

Bumble said its partnership with the Clippers was “inspired by the NBA’s global footprint and the recognition that the Clippers are one of the most progressive organizations in sports and entertainment, led by the NBA’s largest female leadership team.”

Clippers executives include team president Gillian Zucker, the only woman with that title in the NBA; CFO Chris Leotis, director of business development Danita Johnson and director of strategic partnerships Erin Prober.

Financial terms of the Clippers-Bumble deal were not shared. The alliance was valued at $20 million over three years by industry analysts.

The parntership begins tonight (March 6) when the Clippers host the New Orleans Pelicans in the Staples Center.

The Bumble “Empowerment Badge” will be featured on team uniforms and “serve as a powerful reminder from these two world-class companies of how innovation and excellence come from including different perspectives and backgrounds.”

“Never before has a major professional sports team partnered in this way with a female-driven brand like Bumble,” Wolfe Herd, who was co-founder of relationship app Tinder, then founded Bumble shortly after leaving Tinder in 2014., said in a statement. “It’s an honor to partner with an organization as progressive and compassionate as the Clippers.

“Like us, they know generating awareness for diversity and gender equality is critical to business success.”

Austin, Texas-base Bumble said its alliance with the Clippers would be a “fully integrated marketing partnership (enabling) Bumble and the Clippers to leverage their passionate fan followings to further encourage these shared values.”

That includes working with Clippers’ community initiatives to “strengthen the skills, confidence and knowledge necessary for young women to achieve their full potential.”

According to Clippers’ Zucker, “Through (majority owner) Steve Ballmer’s leadership, the Clippers have a clear commitment to diversity and equal opportunity. From our players on the court to our leadership team, we are proud to stand with Bumble and do our part to emphasize that diversity and gender equality in the workplace is essential to organizational excellence.”

Zucker said that Bumble’s “message and technology provide a platform for women in new and non-traditional spaces and it’s important to the Clippers that we innovate and reach our fans wherever our fans are.”

Bumble said it would continue to “commit marketing dollars to working with brands that have strong female representation in executive management, as well as an emphasis on mentoring the next gen of female rising stars.”

The jersey patch deal coincides with the first season of Nike's eight-year, $1 billion deal as the NBA's official on-court uniform provider. Jersey sponsorships were approved by the NBA Board of Governors in April 2016 under a three-year pilot program.

The average value of the 19 previous NBA jersey-patch deals is about $9 million, per industry analysts.

Among the leaders, the Golden State Warriors jersey-logo pact with Rakuten was valued at $60 million over three years.

The Los Angeles Lakers, which share Staples Center with the Clippers, signed with e-commerce firm Wish, a three-year deal that analysts put at $12-$14 million annually, similar in value to an alliance between the New York Knicks and SquareSpace.

The Cleveland Cavaliers signed with Goodyear for $30 million over three years. The Boston Celtics have a three-year deal with GE valued at $24 million.

All patches are 2.5 x 2.5 on the left side, with a Nike Swoosh logo on the right side. Jerseys with sponsor patches do not appear on versions sold at retail outlets but teams have the option to sell the jerseys with sponsor patches in their own retail locations.

The ten teams that have to date not signed logo patch deals include the Chicago Bulls, Dallas Mavericks, Houston Rockets, Indiana Pacers, Memphis Grizzlies, Oklahoma City Thunder, Phoenix Suns, Portland Trail Blazers, San Antonio Spurs and Washington Wizards.

NBA Teams With Jersey-Logo Deals (to date):