The Golden State Warriors have signed the richest jersey sponsorship agreement in North American professional sports history, reaching a multiyear partnership with AI cloud-computing company Iren worth more than $50 million annually.

The agreement replaces the Warriors’ previous jersey sponsor, Rakuten, whose deal was reportedly valued at about $20 million per year. Beginning with the 2026–27 NBA season, Iren’s logo will appear on Warriors uniforms.

According to Sportico, the agreement establishes a new benchmark for jersey sponsorships across professional sports.

The partnership extends well beyond the NBA team.

Iren also becomes the official AI cloud partner of the Golden State Valkyries of the WNBA and the Santa Cruz Warriors of the NBA G League. The company will receive prominent branding throughout Chase Center while also becoming the presenting sponsor of the Warriors’ City Edition platform.

Since the NBA first introduced jersey sponsorship patches in 2017, the small logos have quietly evolved into one of the league’s fastest-growing revenue sources.

Warriors Chief Commercial Officer Mike Kitts described the jersey patch as the organization’s “most visible global platform,” noting that the logo appears wherever the team plays and is seen by millions of viewers through broadcasts, highlights, and social media.

For Iren, the agreement delivers immediate brand recognition.

Originally founded in Australia, the company operates high-performance GPU computing infrastructure supporting artificial intelligence training and inference while also maintaining Bitcoin mining operations. Iren says it has secured access to more than five gigawatts of electrical capacity worldwide.

Co-founder and Co-Chief Executive Officer Daniel Roberts said the Warriors offered a rare combination of championship success, business leadership, and community engagement.

The sponsorship also reflects a much broader trend.

Artificial intelligence companies, data-center operators, and cloud-computing firms are rapidly becoming some of the biggest new advertisers in professional sports as they compete for talent, customers, investors, and public recognition.

San Francisco’s position as one of the world’s leading technology centers has made Bay Area sports franchises especially attractive to technology sponsors.

The Warriors have previously partnered with major technology companies including Rakuten and, before that, cryptocurrency exchange FTX, whose collapse highlighted the potential reputational risks associated with corporate sponsorships.

The Warriors themselves remain among the world’s most valuable sports franchises.

Owner Joe Lacob purchased the team in 2010 for approximately $450 million. After four NBA championships since 2015 and the global popularity of Stephen Curry, the franchise generated roughly $877 million in revenue during 2025 and now ranks among the most valuable teams in global sports.

The organization reportedly generates nearly twice as much sponsorship revenue as any other NBA franchise. Meanwhile, the Golden State Valkyries, only in their second WNBA season, have already established new commercial benchmarks for women’s professional basketball.

The agreement also includes community initiatives focused on artificial intelligence education and STEAM programs throughout the Bay Area.

Questions remain, however.

Iren’s business combines AI computing with Bitcoin mining, both of which require enormous amounts of electricity. The company says it relies heavily on renewable energy while acknowledging that renewable-energy certificates also play a role in meeting sustainability goals.

The Warriors also carry memories of the FTX sponsorship, reminding professional teams that lucrative partnerships can quickly become liabilities if corporate fortunes change.

For now, however, the agreement demonstrates just how much value artificial intelligence companies place on mainstream visibility.

As competition throughout the AI industry intensifies, sports sponsorships are becoming another battlefield—and the front of an NBA jersey has become some of the most valuable advertising space in the world.

JBizNews Desk
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