AdvoCare moves aside as FC Dallas looks for a new primary sponsor

FC Dallas has announced that from the start of 2021 AdvoCare will no longer feature on the front of FC Dallas jerseys. The Plano-based business will feature on the right sleeve of team jerseys in 2021.

The two year agreement will cover FC Dallas, its youth teams, and North Texas SC. The current jersey sponsorship agreement was due to expire at the end of 2020. The existing agreement was worth several million dollars, while a sleeve sponsorship is expected to fetch $500,000-1,000,000 per year.

Major League Soccer has allowed teams to advertise on the right sleeve from the start of 2020 with several teams taking advantage of the additional income. LAFC (Target), Toronto FC (GE Appliances), DC United (Caesars Entertainment), Atlanta United (Piedmont Healthcare), and Sporting Kansas City (Compass Minerals) each display discrete logos in colors complimentary to the jersey color. MLS is also expected to allow sponsors to be placed on shorts in 2021.

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Former FC Dallas player Brek Shea is shown with the 2012 FC Dallas primary jersey, featuring the AdvoCare logo. (FC Dallas Communications)

Announced as FC Dallas’ first jersey sponsor in 2012, AdvoCare would soon take over from Herbalife as the league-wide sponsor for sports drinks. This sponsorship has since been assumed by Body Armor.

AdvoCare was forced to pay a $150m fine to the Federal Trade Commission as part of an October 2019 judgement over the company’s practices as a multi-level marketing operation.

Around that time FC Dallas was known to be in talks with potential sponsors including NEC, whose facial recognition technology is an integral part of the National Soccer Hall of Fame at Toyota Stadium.

NEC has a long history of sponsorship in soccer, most notably featuring on Everton jerseys as the Toffees won the FA Cup in 1995. Toyota is also a likely target after the Japanese manufacturer relocated its North American headquarters to Plano. Similarly, NEC has its North American headquarters in Irving.

FC Dallas will continue to display the AdvoCare logo at the MLS is Back Tournament, and for the remainder of 2020.

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