The fallout continues in the wake of the racist comment scandal surrounding Los Angeles Clippers owner Donald Sterling.
The team has lost their first sponsors, CarMax and State Farm Insurance.
An official statement from CarMax reads:
“CarMax finds the statements attributed to the Clippers’ owner completely unacceptable.These views directly conflict with CarMax’s culture of respect for all individuals. While we have been a proud Clippers sponsor for 9 years and support the team, fans and community, these statements necessitate that CarMax end its sponsorship.”
Shortly after, State Farm withdrew its sponsorship of the team as well.
“While those involved sort out the facts, we will be taking a pause in our relationship with the organization.We are monitoring the situation and we’ll continually assess our options. We have a great relationship with Chris Paul and will continue supporting the Born to Assist advertising campaign involving Chris and now other NBA players.”
The NBA is scheduled to hold a press conference tomorrow to make an announcement regarding its investigation. The Clippers participated in a silent protest during yesterday’s game. Read more about that here.
UPDATE: Kia Motors and Virgin America have also withdrawn their sponsorship.
Virgin America: We have made the decision to end our sponsorship of the L.A. Clippers
— Ryan Ruggiero (@RyanRuggiero) April 28, 2014
KIA: We are suspending our advertising and sponsorship activations with the Clippers
— Ryan Ruggiero (@RyanRuggiero) April 28, 2014
