Crypto has long struggled with a perception problem: complex, technical and, for many, just out of reach. For Coinbase, the challenge isn’t simply to be seen, but to be understood.
Rather than relying on traditional advertising, the brand has built a diverse sponsorship portfolio that spans global sport, entertainment and digital culture from the Aston Martin F1 Team and the National Basketball Association (NBA) to esports giant Riot Games, using each partnership to connect with audiences in different, but equally relevant, ways.
While these sponsorships take many forms, Gareth Kay, VP of brand at Coinbase, emphasises that they are all guided by the principle that Coinbase approaches partnerships as a connected portfolio, rather than a series of standalone deals.
That portfolio is built on a consistent evaluation framework, he explains, which assesses every potential partnership through audience fit, brand story alignment, the assets Coinbase receives and how effectively impact can be measured.
This structured approach also defines the role each partnership plays within the wider strategy.
“Each partnership has a specific job. The NBA is our anchor platform — it gives us credibility and reach at scale with an audience that is really receptive,” he says.
“Aston Martin F1 Team and Riot Games extend our brand globally into premium, innovation-forward contexts. And then we create space for challenger moments — non-traditional activations, cultural hijacks — that keep us sharp and experimental.”
By clearly defining the role of each sponsorship within this system, Coinbase is also able to shape where it goes next, Kay adds, using the same framework to guide decisions around which sports and communities to enter.
At the core of that expansion is a desire to move beyond category association. He notes that Coinbase wants to be linked to access, the future and culture, rather than simply a product category.
“With that in mind, you’ve seen our partner mix get more diverse, and that will likely continue,” he says.
But just as important as deciding what comes next is evolving what already exists. Kay points out that Coinbase’s focus has shifted from visibility to depth within its existing partnerships.
“In 2021, it was about showing up — becoming the NBA’s first-ever crypto partner, getting our name on NBA courts. Now we’re in what I’d call the proof-of-product phase,” he says.
Having already delivered significant awareness gains, the challenge has moved on. The focus now is on strengthening loyalty among existing users, shifting perception among those familiar with crypto but not yet engaged, and using partnerships to demonstrate that crypto infrastructure offers a meaningful upgrade on what it replaces.
“For fans we want them to go from spectator to participant in the onchain economy. That might start small — getting $5 in Bitcoin at a Warriors game. Then it’s minting a digital collectible at NBA All-Star Weekend and realising you just did your first onchain transaction. Each touchpoint moves someone a little further in,” he says.
Partnerships in practice
Within that broader portfolio approach, Kay highlights how individual partnerships are designed to do different jobs while reinforcing the same overarching goal: bringing more of the world onchain in ways that feel culturally relevant as well as technically meaningful.
For example, the partnership with the Aston Martin F1 team is intended to extend the Coinbase brand globally into premium, innovation-forward contexts.
“More and more of the world is moving onchain and this partnership allowed us to bring the world of Formula One onchain with the Aston Martin Aramco team,” he says.
But the activation is not just symbolic. Coinbase pays the Aston Martin F1 Team, along with other partners such as the New York Liberty, their full sponsorship fees in USDC, settled instantly, transparently and onchain.
“It’s an incredible opportunity to show the old payment rails what an upgrade looks like. More and more we are leveraging our partnerships to prove crypto and crypto infrastructure,” he says.
Alongside these infrastructure demonstrations, Coinbase also uses its partnerships to embed itself in the cultural fabric of the sports it works with, particularly through storytelling formats.
The NBA Rookie Firsts series is one example, following emerging players as they enter the league and begin shaping its next era.
“These are real, unscripted stories that reinforce Coinbase as an authentic participant in the NBA community, building trust and brand love with fans over time,” he says.
How success is defined
Similar to its approach of a sponsorship portfolio, Kay explains that measurement at Coinbase is less about isolated performance metrics and more about whether each activation shifts perception to make crypto feel more accessible, relevant and less intimidating to people outside the space.
While standard KPIs, such as brand lift, impression value and media equivalency, are used, the guiding question is whether the work is actually moving people closer to participation in the onchain economy.
He says this is structured through three clear measurement lenses: “We think about it in three buckets: reach — are we getting in front of the right new audiences at scale? Resonance — did we create a cultural moment people talk about and share? And onramp — did it actually move someone into the onchain economy?”
Different partnerships are then optimised for different outcomes within that framework. The NBA partnership, for example, is primarily about reach, placing Coinbase in front of millions of fans at scale.
In contrast, activations around Aston Martin F1 Team lean more towards resonance. One example saw Coinbase create a 10-foot electric-blue replica that toured London landmarks last July, stopping in Covent Garden to distribute exclusive merch ahead of the British Grand Prix.
“That was a resonance meets reach,” he explains. “It generated social velocity and cultural conversation around a moment.”
Meanwhile, partnerships with Riot Games are designed to drive direct action. A Valorant Champions trip giveaway, for example, offered fans the chance to win a trip to Paris by signing up to Coinbase, creating a clear onramp into the platform.
“That was a straight onramp play – we’re measuring conversions,” he says.
Throughout all the partnerships and their respective activations, Kay frames them all as a connected system rather than a set of individual campaigns: different partnerships, different executions, and different measures of success, but all serving the same progression from awareness to engagement, and from cultural relevance to real-world participation in the onchain economy.