I think we can all agree that sports clubs need revenue to survive, and sponsorship money has always been part of that ecosystem. But the difference between traditional sponsors and crypto companies is the risk that gets shifted onto fans. When a bank or a car manufacturer sponsors a club, the product is tangible and regulated. With crypto, we saw the crash wipe out billions, and teams like Arsenal and Manchester City were left promoting platforms that collapsed overnight. That is not a hypothetical harm. Fans invest their savings based on trust they extend to their club, and the club becomes a de facto endorser of a wildly volatile asset. The integrity argument is even stronger. If a team is partly funded by a token that can be rug-pulled, the club is entangled with something it cannot control. Banning these deals is not anti-business; it is pro-consumer. We protect fans from themselves, and we protect the sport from becoming the latest pump-and-dump billboard.
06:22 AM