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MLB Sensation Shohei Ohtani Becomes FTX’s Newest Brand Ambassador

The exchange’s deal with the Japanese-born pitcher and slugger is the latest in its run of high-profile athlete partnerships.

Updated May 11, 2023, 4:00 p.m. Published Nov 16, 2021, 7:30 p.m.

Shohei Ohtani (Steph Chambers/Getty Images)

Major League Baseball (MLB) phenom Shohei Ohtani is joining FTX as its newest brand ambassador, the crypto exchange announced Tuesday.

Ohtani’s compensation for the deal will be paid entirely in cryptocurrency and FTX equity, according to a report from CNN.

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The deal with the Los Angeles Angels pitcher and frontrunner for the American League’s Most Valuable Player award is just the latest of the exchange’s many sports-related sponsorships inked in the last year.

FTX signed former Boston Red Sox slugger David Ortiz as a multi-year ambassador in October and also made a deal in July that put the exchange’s logo patch on MLB umpire shirts.

Ohtani joins the likes of U.S. sports superstars Tampa Bay Buccaneer quarterback Tom Brady and Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry as exchange ambassadors.

FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried told CoinDesk in October the exchange will also be airing a commercial in February during the National Football League’s championship game, the Super Bowl.

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Eli Tan

Eli was a news reporter for CoinDesk who covered NFTs, gaming and the metaverse. He graduated from St. Olaf College with a degree in English. He holds ETH, SOL, AVAX and a few NFTs above CoinDesk's disclosure threshold of $1000.