The National Basketball Association has become the first major U.S. sports league to allow advertising on uniforms.
The four major pro sports leagues, the NBA, NFL, NHL and MLB all allow corporate logos on practice gear, but the NBA is the first to approve ad space on jerseys during regular season games.
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The NBA’s board of governors approved the new ad space during its spring meeting.
The NBA tested ads on jerseys during the All-Star game in February. Players sported Kia logos on their all-star jerseys.
The advertisement space will be sold as part of a three-year pilot program starting with the 2017-2018 season. The ads will appear on a two-and-a-half inch square patch on the left should of the jersey. That is where the NBA logo used to be.
Teams will reportedly net half of the sponsorship money from the jersey ads. The rest will go to the league’s revenue-sharing pool. NBA commissioner Adam Silver has said the new ad space could bring in $100 million.
