Coming off the heels of Team USA winning the gold medal in men’s basketball, the NBA’s Minnesota Timberwolves and Sezzle, a fintech company, are partnering in a multi-year deal, naming Sezzle as the official jersey patch partner. Ironically, in the final Olympic men’s basketball game, Timberwolves player Anthony Edwards, playing for Team USA, faced up against his own teammate, Ruby Gobert who played for France. Edwards and Gobert joined Kevin Garnett and Kevin Love as the only Timberwolves to play in an Olympic final.

Minnesota Timberwolves Have Best Season In 20 Years

The Timberwolves had their best season in 20 years and are the number one team in the NBA for new season tickets sold for the upcoming 2024-2025 season. “We have the fastest-growing fan base in the NBA. We have broken all franchise records for tickets, sponsorships, and suites for every home game this past year, sold out for all 41 home games, and we are anticipating sellouts for every home game for the upcoming season,” said Ethan Casson, CEO of the Minnesota Timberwolves.

Sezzle Shows Strong Growth in 2024

Sezzle recently announced its second-quarter financial results showing substantial growth for the company. Total revenue grew 60.2% and consumer purchase frequency climbed to 4.8 times in the second quarter from 3.3 times in 2023. The buy-now-pay-later company increased its guidance for the full year, expecting a total revenue increase of 35-40% compared to the original guidance of 25%. “These results leave me confident that we are just at the start of our growth journey, and with the initiatives we have in the pipeline, we are poised to embark on an exciting new phase,” stated Charlie Youakim, CEO of Sezzle.

The New Partnership Allows For National Recognition

“Anthony Edwards is the next coming of Michael Jordan and we feel like the Timberwolves could get us great national exposure over the next three years,” expressed Youakim. Two winning teams that share a similar growth trajectory have partnered up to amplify their presence with consumers. The timing is ripe for the Minneapolis home-town partnership. Not only do both companies come from the same humble beginnings as the underdogs in their respective markets, but both were founded in the same city. “We’ve known the team at Sezzle for years and it is great to partner with them in the jersey patch program. Sezzle is just blocks away from where Timberwolves headquarters are and where our team plays,” said Casson.

“We are both businesses built on customers. We are both businesses built entirely around fans. We’re both businesses that have a shared commitment to our stakeholders, optionality, flexibility, innovation, and great service,” said Casson. Youakim discussed the strategic partnership between Sezzle and the Minnesota Timberwolves as a perfect timing for the collaboration. “The Timberwolves’ potential to reach the playoffs and Sezzle’s current growth aligns with both company’s goals. The partnership is seen as an opportunity to boost brand awareness, particularly given the wide demographic that follows the NBA,” said Youakim. “There is great excitement of aligning two winning teams.”

NBA Jersey Patches: A $293M Branding Game-Changer

The multi-year partnership designates Sezzle as the team’s official jersey patch partner and season-presenting partner including prominent in-arena signage, in-game promotions, and community events. The partnership includes on-court promotion, concourse activations, and digital content for the Minnesota Lynx (WNBA). “This is something so much bigger than a two-and-a-half by two-and-a-half patch on our uniform. We’re both businesses built entirely around fans, with a shared commitment to innovation and great service,” said Casson.

“We partnered with a company called WME Sports (William Morris Endeavor), a conglomerate made up of agency entertainment, media, sports agents, and consultants to help negotiate the partnership and the agreement terms between the team and Sezzle,” explained Casson. The NBA jersey patch partnerships were introduced to the NBA in the 2017-2018 season with revenue currently accounting for over $293 million. The NBA jersey patch program has become a great branding opportunity and revenue generator for both participants. “We were already cheering for our hometown NBA team, the Timberwolves, and now we’re going to cheer even more,” exclaimed Youakim.