Manchester United's deal with blockchain platform Tezos, which put its logo on the club’s training kits from 2022 to mid-2025, has wrapped up. That partnership brought in over £20 million a year, one of the highest paid crypto sponsorships in Premier League history. Now the club searches for its next training kit sponsor, with talks reportedly underway for a replacement deal worth more than £18 million annually.
Back in 2022, the Tezos deal was seen as a milestone: a major football club openly backing a blockchain protocol. Alongside this, United launched their own fan token on Socios.com via Chiliz, aiming to boost fan engagement by letting supporters vote and participate in club-related decisions.
Such crypto deals haven’t always had smooth runs. For example, FTX’s sponsorship of the Miami Heat’s arena collapsed spectacularly, and Crypto.com dropped $700 million on naming rights for what was the Staples Center, only to pull back later. Silence from Manchester United since their Tezos deal ended signals the challenges crypto companies face in sports marketing. No new crypto partnerships have emerged for the club, and no fresh fan token initiatives have been announced.
For crypto investors watching sports sponsorships, the Manchester United case offers some caution. These deals are costly marketing efforts rather than clear signs of blockchain adoption. When a blockchain company pays tens of millions a year simply for logo visibility, the critical question becomes whether that spending actually drives growth in users, transactions, or developer activity not just brand exposure.
The situation is complicated by fan token platforms like Chiliz and Socios.com, whose trading volumes and engagement peaked in 2021 and 2022 but have since declined. Tracking who replaces Tezos on United’s training kit and whether there’s deeper blockchain integration beyond just branding will be important indicators of crypto’s future role in football sponsorships.
This material is for informational purposes and does not serve as financial advice.
