Why MLB teams have STRAUSS ads on their helmets during the World Series

While uniform sponsors have long been prominent in international sports, the American sports landscape has gradually seen more and more ads make their way onto the uniforms. In baseball, jersey sleeve sponsors have been in place for a couple seasons.

But MLB waited until the postseason to make quite the league-wide change.

As the NL and AL wild-card series got underway on Tuesday, fans noticed that all the batting helmets had a massive "STRAUSS" ad on both sides. This evidently was a partnership between Major League Baseball and the German workwear brand that was finalized back in September. Yet, unless you were paying attention to MLB press releases, Tuesday was the first time many fans saw the sponsored helmets.

MLB -- particularly under Rob Manfred's leadership -- has never been one to turn down a quick buck. We remember the FTX debacle where the scandal-ridden, now-defunct cryptocurrency exchange had its logo on all the umpiring uniforms. So, we shouldn't be surprised that Manfred would let a brand with minimal awareness in the U.S. be plastered all over helmets in the sport's biggest games.

According to Sportico, the placement could be worth $15 million in brand exposure.

But it was safe to say that MLB fans were not enthused with the sponsored helmets.

This was how Twitter/X reacted

x.com

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This article originally appeared on For The Win: Why MLB teams have STRAUSS ads on their helmets during the World Series