PSP 2023

The following post was written by the Premier Ultimate League's Bonesaw Kepner, who is also an owner of the Austin Torch.

With the season just over a month away, there’s a ton of exciting PUL action coming very soon, including the 2023 Player Sponsorship Program! 

The #PSP2023 is the PUL's annual fundraising initiative and helps to ensure the running of ultimate's most impactful and important professional league.

2023 PSP Program Highlights:

• Launch Date: March 1, 2023 at 12:00pm ET
• Close Date: March 9, 2023 at 12:00pm ET
• Sliding scale pricing feature ($150 regular price, $100 solidarity price, $200 redistribution price)
• 12 teams
• 1440 player and coach sponsorships (120 per team)

Each jersey is available in limited quantity (determined by the team) with a total of 120 jerseys per team. Fans need to act fast to sponsor their favorite player before they sell out!

VC and the PUL are offering three different levels for the PSP jerseys to invite a broader part of the community to participate. In addition to the original $150 Sponsorship Rate, there is also a Solidarity Rate of $100 and Redistribution Rate of $200. Learn more about our Sliding Scale approach in this blog post by VC Ultimate (with very special thanks to Both/And Consulting).

Part of the PUL’s mission is to reconsider and re-invent what a professional sports league is and stands for, including how the teams and league are funded.

The launch of the fundraiser is also the fans’ first chance to view the full rosters of all twelve PUL teams!

This will be the fourth time the PUL has run this flagship fundraiser with the Official League Merchandiser VC Ultimate. First run in 2019 (after the Austin Torch began the program in 2018), the fundraiser has “sold out” of all jerseys each of the three seasons, generating $115,000 in 2019 and over $200,000 raised in both 2020 and 2022!

After 20 years in ultimate, we've never seen anything like this. - VC's Adriana Withers reflecting on the 2019 PSP.

Part of the PUL’s mission is to reconsider and re-invent what a professional sports league is and stands for, including how the teams and league are funded. As a non-profit organization, it’s the PUL’s goal to grow WITH our core Ultimate community, not to exploit it. The league and teams rely on community funding to operate each season, and the Player Sponsorship Program is designed to be an engaging and exciting way for the Ultimate community to hype the teams, create a true sense of ownership in the success of the league, and bring visibility to the individual athletes whose names adorn the back of the fantastic jerseys VC designs and produces!

All of the money raised in the program after production and shipping costs go directly to the teams for a potential net raise of  between $6,840 - $12,480, depending on how many jerseys are sold using the sliding scale pricing option. The cost of participating in a season for a PUL team ranged between $30,000 - $80,000 in 2022. Teams cover player salaries, venue rentals, travel and lodging costs for away games, annual league membership fee, marketing and promotion, practice facility rentals, insurance, and much more. The revenue from the Sponsor-a-Player program is typically the largest single revenue source for PUL teams each year, and thus a crucial element of the sustainability of the team and league. 

#PSP2023 also represents the official launch of VC's new gender-free "Fitted" fit!

Program links:
https://vcmerchtent.com/pages/pul
https://vcmerchtent.com/pages/psp-sliding-scale 

About the PUL:
https://www.premierultimateleague.com  

Let's go!