The NFL's 2019 season, its 100th, ended with Super Bowl LIV on 2 February 2020, where the Kansas City Chiefs beat the San Francisco 49ers. Commercially it was the best year the league had had. The sponsorship consultancy IEG estimated league sponsorship revenue for 2019-20 at $1.47 billion, a record for the league.
Growth came from two directions: long-standing partners renewing, and a run of new ones, several of them in categories the NFL had never sold before.
New NFL league partners in the 2019-20 season
| Partner | Category | Joined |
|---|---|---|
| Caesars Entertainment | Official Casino Partner (the league's first) | Early 2019 |
| Lowe's | Official Home Improvement Sponsor | 2019 |
| Oakley | On-field eyewear and helmet visors | August 2019 |
| DraftKings | Official Daily Fantasy Partner | September 2019 |
| Babe (AB InBev) | Official Wine Partner | 2019-20 season |
| Rocket Mortgage | Official Mortgage Sponsor (the league's first) | January 2020 |
| H&M | NFL-branded apparel in more than 20 countries outside the US | January 2020 |
The new partners
Categories the league had not sold
Three of the new deals opened categories that did not exist before. Caesars Entertainment became the NFL's first official casino partner early in 2019, a year after the Supreme Court cleared the way for states to legalise sports betting. Rocket Mortgage, the Quicken Loans lender, became the first official mortgage sponsor under a multi-year deal announced on 7 January 2020, timed to start at the Super Bowl. And Babe, an Anheuser-Busch InBev sparkling wine, was named official wine partner.
Eyewear, retail and fantasy sports
Oakley joined in August 2019 as the on-field eyewear partner, supplying Prizm-lens helmet visors to all 32 teams. Lowe's became the official home-improvement sponsor in 2019, and DraftKings became the official daily fantasy partner that September. In January 2020 H&M signed to sell NFL-branded clothing in more than 20 countries outside the United States, an attempt to reach fans abroad.
The partners that carried the season
The bulk of the $1.47 billion came from partners the league had held for years. Anheuser-Busch InBev, through Bud Light, held the beer category; PepsiCo held soft drinks and snacks and, through Pepsi, the Super Bowl halftime show; Gatorade was on the sidelines. Verizon, Bose, Microsoft and Amazon Web Services all held league-wide partnerships, and Visa had been the NFL's payments partner since 1995.
Individual deal values are rarely published. The league reports neither the terms of each partnership nor a tier-by-tier breakdown, which is why an outside estimate such as IEG's is the standard measure of the total.
Where things stand now
Several categories have changed hands since. Pepsi's decade as halftime sponsor ended with Super Bowl LVI; Apple Music took over from Super Bowl LVII in 2023. Jersey Mike's replaced Subway as official sandwich sponsor in 2025, after Subway's five-year run.
Two of the longest relationships have ended in 2026. Visa's sponsorship, which began in 1995, concluded in March 2026, and American Express became official payments partner from the 2026 season, in a deal reported at about $910 million over seven years. In July 2026 Pernod Ricard's Jameson became official spirits sponsor, replacing Diageo, which had held the category since 2021.
Key facts
- Season: 2019 NFL season, ending with Super Bowl LIV on 2 February 2020
- League sponsorship revenue: $1.47 billion (IEG estimate, a record)
- New league partners: Seven, including Caesars, Lowe's, Oakley, Rocket Mortgage and H&M
- First-ever categories: Casino (Caesars), mortgage (Rocket Mortgage), wine (Babe)
- Biggest change since: American Express replaced Visa from the 2026 season
Frequently asked questions
How much did the NFL earn from sponsorship in 2019-20?
IEG estimated $1.47 billion, a record for the league.
Which sponsors joined the NFL in 2019?
Caesars, Lowe's, Oakley, DraftKings and Babe during 2019, then Rocket Mortgage and H&M in January 2020.
Is Visa still the NFL's payments partner?
No. Visa's deal ended in March 2026 and American Express took over from the 2026 season.
