The Spanish football league, LaLiga has announced a new sponsorship agreement with the Italian company, Panini America. As part of the deal, the brand is set to serve as the presenting partner for the third edition of the eLaLiga U.S. Challenge. It is the publisher’s first gaming collaboration with a sports league.
The agreement is the newest for LaLiga North America, which, according to the league, produces $12 million in regional sponsorship per season which is more than any other part of the globe.
While speaking to FOS, LaLiga North America CEO Boris Gartner, said, “Anybody on the brand side that either wants to reach an audience through soccer or is interested in the sport, knows that La Liga is here in the territory, is very active, and has a suite of products that would be easily tailored to reach their objectives. We’ve done a lot of education, but then also a lot of execution. And I think that we’ve proven our value at this point.
“There’s going to be a lot of eyes on the sport in general and how the U.S. fanbase starts to really engage in a deeper way with it … and not just when the big tentpole events happen,”
Panini America’s VP of marketing and digital Jason Howarth, said, “There’s just lots of synergies in terms of audience and demographic.”
This esports tournament is just the latest initiative utilised by LaLiga North America to target its desired demographic: Hispanics in Generation Z in the United States.
By securing the major market, the league’s outpost procedure will be able to continue building on its so far effective revenue-generating operation. Given soccer’s relatively high youth participation, the achievement of the United States women’s national team, and perhaps most notably — the upcoming 2026 FIFA World Cup in North America, LaLiga sees a huge opportunity to expand its fan base in the United States.