German cannabis operator signs on as main sponsor of pro soccer team

German cannabis company Four 20 Pharma has inked a deal to be the main jersey sponsor for Sport-Club Paderborn 07, a professional German soccer club.

Sport-Club Paderborn 07 – commonly known as SC Paderborn 07 and based in Paderborn, North Rhine-Westphalia – competes in the German second division, under the Bundesliga.

The financial terms of the agreement were not disclosed.

The two-year deal commences with the 2023-24 season, which begins Aug. 18.

Professional soccer teams typically sell sponsorship opportunities on the front of their jerseys, but it’s rare for a cannabis company to secure such a deal.

“Four 20 Pharma is currently already a very good partner, who will once again significantly increase its visibility through advertising on the jerseys of our second division team,” the soccer club’s managing director, Martin Hornberger, said in a statement.

Four 20 Pharma is majority owned by American marijuana company Curaleaf Holdings.

“The sponsorship gives us the opportunity to inform (targeted) audiences and the general public about our company throughout Germany,” Four 20 Pharma CEO Thomas Schatton said.

“Through comprehensive education, we want to end the stigmatization of the oldest medicinal plant in the world, which is based on prejudice and false information.”

Source: https://mjbizdaily.com/german-cannabis-operator-signs-on-as-main-sponsor-of-pro-soccer-team/