Mercedes F1 announced the suspension of the Formula 1 sponsorship deal with cryptocurrency exchange FTX following its Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing. The Mercedes suspension could be one of several sports sponsorships to get canceled after FTX signed lucrative sports deals valued at hundreds of millions of dollars.
“As a first step, we have suspended our partnership agreement with FTX,” said Mercedes, according to Autosport. “This means the company will no longer appear on our race car and other branded assets from this weekend. We will continue to monitor closely the situation as it evolves.”
Before its collapse, FTX made big bets on sport to raise its profile, especially in the United States. By 2022, FTX held partnerships with leagues and players across multiple sports, including big names such as the NBA Warriors, Miami Heat, the MLB, and the MLB all-star player Shohei Ohtani. The sponsorships were high-valued, with the naming rights for the Miami Heat stadium valued at $135 million over 19 years. On Friday, Miami Heat and Miami-Dade County said they were terminating the deal. Thus, the collapse of FTX has a major impact on customers and also puts some of its sports industry partners in a precarious position.
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