Aesthetically unpleasing as they may be, shirt sponsorships are pretty much an unavoidable part of modern soccer. But one Italian club is softening the blow a little bit.
Earlier this month, Serie A side SS Lazio signed a sponsorship deal with Binance, a cryptocurrency company. As part of the deal, Binance is launching a fan token for the club. Fan token buyers then have the power to vote on matters relating to the club.
One of the first votes will decide whether the company’s logo appears on Lazio’s home kit in navy blue or white.
Other Lazio fan token votes include choosing a song to play during team warmups and choosing a header image for the club’s website.
Fan tokens are a fairly recent innovation that give fans a way to engage with their favourite teams and earn rewards. Many high-profile European clubs have signed deals with Binance rival Socios.com, including Barcelona, Juventus, Paris Saint-Germain, Arsenal, Manchester City, AC Milan and Atletico Madrid. Socios has even bought front-of-shirt space advertising fan tokens on Valencia and Inter Milan’s kits.
Binance’s logo appeared in navy blue on Lazio’s away kits during a match against Hellas Verona FC on Sunday, Oct. 24.
Feature graphics courtesy @OfficialSSLazio / Twitter