Major League Baseball (MLB) has confirmed an expansive sponsorship deal with US bank Capital One.
The deal, which was first reported in January, is worth $125 million over five years, according to CNBC. It makes Capital One the official bank and credit card partner of the North American baseball league, as well as the presenting sponsor of the champion-crowning World Series.
Capital One takes over the bank and credit card sponsorship rights from Bank of America, which has been a partner of MLB since 2004.
The new agreement will provide several benefits for Capital One cardholders, including access to tickets for marquee events such as All-Star Week and the playoffs, as well as discounts for the MLB Shop and MLB.TV subscription streaming service.
In addition, Capital One has also committed to making a minimum $250,000 donation this year to the Jackie Robinson Foundation, a scholarship and leadership development programme for minority college students.
Capital One joins a growing number of financial services companies sponsoring MLB, including the likes of payment technology giant Mastercard and cryptocurrency platform FTX.
MLB and its 30 teams generated $1.13 billion in sponsorship revenue for the 2021 season. The sponsorship valuation firm ranked banks as the top-spending brand category, with companies from that sector putting more than $95 million towards MLB deals last year.
