The National Basketball Association (NBA) team, Los Angeles Lakers have signed South Korean company Bibigo as their new jersey sponsor. As per the terms of the deal, Bibigo will be featuring on the front of the Los Angeles Lakers jersey in a deal that is said to be worth $100 million.
Bibigo is a South Korean organization specialising in packaged food like dumplings, Asian sauces and other frozen meals. They want to use the global reach of the Los Angeles Lakers to promote their brand. Due to a new shift in business rules in the NBA, teams can have their logo in overseas business deals.
“Now you can use Lakers logos worldwide to enhance and explain and promote your association,” Tim Harris, President of Lakers operations said.
The Los Angeles Lakers have a huge social media following across platforms like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube and more. This amounts to over 60 million followers and is the most for any NBA team. Hence it makes good sense that Bibigo wants to partner with them.
“The Lakers are the No. 1 team in sports,” said Wookho Kyeong, chief marketing officer of CJ CheilJedang, the parent company of Bibigo. “The Lakers are more than just a basketball team. The Lakers, globally, are a cultural icon, especially for young people. Our vision, is to cover the entire globe.”