Sharks Sports & Entertainment is set to become the first parent company of an NHL team to begin to accept cryptocurrency for large and recurring payments.
Starting June 15, the Sharks will accept cryptocurrency for season ticket purchases, luxury box leases, and sponsorship deals, an SSE spokesman confirmed. The Sports Business Journal first reported details of the initiative.
Team president Jonathan Becher said using cryptocurrency for smaller purchases inside SAP Center such as single game tickets, food and beverage, and merchandise will be reviewed in the future.
In March, the Oakland A’s announced they were selling six-person private suites at the Coliseum for the 2021 season for one Bitcoin, which, at the time, was worth around $60,000. As of Monday, one Bitcoin was worth just over $35,000.
Other professional sports teams to accept Bitcoin include the Dallas Mavericks and Sacramento Kings of the NBA and Southampton F.C. of the Premier League in England.
The Sharks will be working with Atlanta-based payment processor BitPay, which also has an office in San Francisco. The Sharks are already accepting PayPal, which started to accept cryptocurrency last year.
“We’re accepting PayPal, so then by definition, we’re accepting cryptocurrency,” Becher told the Sports Business Journal. “Why not embrace it and make it more visible as opposed to just doing it through a third party?”
BitPay accepts Bitcoin, Dogecoin, and Ethereum among its payment options.
Per a Sharks spokesman, event prices for suites at SAP Center, depending on size of the luxury box and the type of event, range from $6,500 in the penthouse to $7,500 on the concourse. The cost of leasing a suite for one year ranges from $195,000 to $375,000.
SSE, which leases SAP Center from the city of San Jose, has started to schedule concerts at the downtown arena, including Harry Styles and Guns ‘N Roses in August. The NHL is targeting Oct. 12 for the start of the 2021-2022 season.