Back in June of last year, MLB and FTX Trading Limited announced a groundbreaking partnership that was the first between a professional sports league and cryptocurrency exchange.
FTX.US also became the league’s first umpire uniform patch partner. Beginning with the 2021 MLB All-Star Game, umpires have worn an FTX patch on the sleeve of their uniform.
However, change is now on the horizon in the wake of FTX filing for bankruptcy, which has impacted MLB and other entities.
According to ESPN’s Joon Lee, MLB commissioner Rob Manfred said umpires will no longer wear an FTX patch and the sponsorship has come to an end:
Additionally, Manfred said FTX — the cryptocurrency firm that collapsed in recent weeks — would not return as a sponsor in 2023. FTX previously appeared on the uniform patches for umpires during the 2022 season.
“The FTX development was a little jarring,” Manfred said. “We have been really careful moving forward in this space. We’ve been really religious about staying away from coins themselves as opposed to more company-based sponsorships. We think that was prudent particularly given the way things unfolded. We will proceed with caution in the future.”
In addition to being removed from umpires’ uniforms, the FTX name is coming off the arena where the Miami Heat play, and the football field where the California Golden Bears play.
Along with filing for bankruptcy, the company also announced that CEO Sam Bankman-Fried resigned from his role but will remain to assist the newly-appointed John Ray III in an orderly transition.
Many of the employees are expected to continue with the FTX Group and assist Ray and independent professionals in its operations during the Chapter 11 proceedings.
Shohei Ohtani & David Ortiz among MLB stars named in class-action lawsuit against FTX
Los Angeles Angels two-way star Shohei Ohtani and Hall of Famer David Ortiz were among the eight athletes named in a class-action lawsuit against FTX.
The suit claims that the aforementioned sports stars blindly endorsed the cryptocurrency exchange without doing any research and “funneled investors into the FTX Ponzi scheme,” causing $11 billion in damages to consumers.
While Ohtani and Ortiz were named in the lawsuit, MLB itself was not. Tom Brady, Stephen Curry and Shaquille O’Neal are among the other celebrity defendants being sued.
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