Payment-Linked Fan Loyalty is Sports’ Next Revenue Frontier

Payment-Linked Fan Loyalty is Sports’ Next Revenue Frontier

Big four sports organizations spend a tremendous amount of effort trying to maximize game-day revenues. And by and large, they do a decent job of capturing those income streams (think: 1/3 are maxed out on growth, 1/3 have some upside, 1/3 still have a lot of upside).

However, few, if any, regularly monetize their fans outside of the stadium environment. 

Implementation of a team-branded credit card and payment-linked loyalty program could change that–and fundamentally reshape organizations’ revenue models in the process. Rewards programs have generated billions of dollars in incremental revenue for retail and travel providers; imagine what they could do for sports franchises with rabid fandoms.

The base case for implementing a payment-linked loyalty program is compelling. 

The average NFL fan spends ~$3,200/year on discretionary purchases unrelated to game attendance. A basic program that captured even 1% of that amount would net the franchise an additional $32 annually.  

That’s a reasonable amount to expect a club to capture. Payment-linked loyalty programs generate, on average, more than $100 per ‘top-of-wallet’ user each year.

For an NFL team with one million fans, that could realistically mean more than $32mm in incremental annual recurring revenue–and that’s before it layers on any advanced features or AI-powered capabilities.

Artificial intelligence can supercharge an organization’s loyalty strategy by optimizing various components of the program’s foundation in real-time. The tech will:

• Predict high-value transaction moments with 85% accuracy

• Reduce fraud by up to 60% through pattern recognition

• Increase offer conversion rates by 25-40%

• Optimize currency blending for maximum yield

• Identify churn risks before engagement drops and initiate personalized campaigns

• Provide insights that can be used to inform fan segmentation and offers

For example, it can detect fans who regularly purchase pizza on their way home from home games and trigger targeted discount offers to those individuals from local restaurant partners.

Card-linked loyalty programs enable members to connect a credit or debit card to a company’s rewards platform so they can seamlessly earn points on everyday purchases. Retailers, airlines, and hotels have all long used the approach to drive incremental revenue, capture valuable customer insights, increase sponsor conversions, and foster year-round brand loyalty and engagement. 

But sports franchises have been slow to follow suit. And those that have dabbled in loyalty have used/are using single-currency or bare-bones framework that severely limits their revenue upside and ability to understand the fan. 

Payment-linked loyalty —a robust rewards model that incorporates multiple currencies and sponsor collaborations— is required to truly unlock the opportunity that exists. The underlying infrastructure must be able to support various customer payment methods, including cash, credit cards, loyalty currencies, and crypto, and seamlessly blend them together on the fly into a payment waterfall (imagine a person in the grocery store stacking coupons, but using different kinds of assets). 

In short, rewards platforms must be more robust, flexible, and revenue-oriented than the simple ‘link one card, earn points’ approach we’ve seen in sports to date.

"The real magic happens when you turn everyday fan spending into active engagement," Vincent Sarafa, a veteran of sports fintech initiatives at Bruin Capital, CrowdPlay, and Augeo said. "With brands, teams, and leagues looking ‘beyond the card’, payment-linked loyalty isn't just a rewards program—it's a financial ecosystem that benefits every stakeholder, and most importantly, the fan."

Every time a fan spends with a linked method, he or she earns points; and the team collects a small fee—0.5–1.5%. While a single $100 grocery run will only yield $0.50–$1.50, at scale, those kinds of micro-earnings can add up quickly.

Tack on the increase in sponsor premiums that come with the hyper-granular promotions teams will now be able to run (think: brands will pay 20–30% more for targeted campaigns with verifiable sales impact) and the value arbitrage opportunities that exist and the program’s revenue potential grows further.

For context, teams can make a 1–3% margin converting currencies into spendable rewards points. A $150 jersey purchased with cash ($75), crypto ($20), and expiring airline miles would likely net an organization ~$4.50 in fees.

While many sports marketers are drawn to cutting-edge innovation and emerging startups, large-scale loyalty programs require enterprise-grade infrastructure. The platform should be able to handle billions of transactions, offer robust data security for fans and sponsor partners alike, and integrate with complex merchant networks. It’s hard to point to a single early-stage company that can attribute seven-figures in revenue solely to its loyalty business.

But that doesn’t mean there isn’t a role for small or niche innovators. A balanced approach that combines an established, stable platform (think: Mastercard, Dosh, Chase Media Services, or Rewards Network) with the specialized features of an up-and-coming provider (see: FanCash+ by Rethink Loyalty or Credenza) will often deliver the best results—no different than when a GM successfully blends veteran leadership with rookie talent to build a championship roster.

For sports properties, the opportunity cost of waiting to deploy a robust card-linked loyalty program is substantial; we’re talking tens of millions in incremental ARR, at a minimum. Those that use AI to improve targeting, reduce fraud, and optimize currency handling can meaningfully expand on that upside. 

A multi-currency, payment-linked rewards program has the potential to morph into a dynamic, 365-day/year interactive network that rewards fans, generates measurable ROI for sponsors, and begins to tap into the billions of dollars in discretionary spending rights owners are leaving uncaptured beyond game-day.

Franchises looking to expand their revenue playbook should seriously consider the rare opportunity to enter a new market with proven technology, eager participants, and nine-figure upside. The question isn't whether payment-linked loyalty will become a standard income stream in sports—it's which franchises will capture the first-mover advantages in their respective markets.

Top 5 Sports Business Headlines
Click here to subscribe to Sport & Story Daily and never miss a story.

• Where Could the NFL Hold an International Super Bowl? The Pros and Cons of Potential Hosts

• MLS to Introduce Sunday Night Soccer for 2025 and Will Go Head-to-Head With the NFL

• FOX Pulls in Record Revenue For Super Bowl LIX

• UFL to Make Central Football Ops HQ in Arlington, Texas

• Closing Shot: NASCAR’s Latest Throwback