We Don’t Need No Stinkin Sponsors!

I see a lot of teams, groups, and players froth at the mouth when it comes to sponsors. They think that it is the end all be all for being a paintball player, that it takes you to a place you couldn’t get to if you did not have that sponsor. I was one like that at one time, daydreaming what it would be like to get a sponsor…until I found out what having sponsors really meant.

For most teams, all a sponsor does for a player or team is to give them a discount on their product. In turn you are expected to play with their items and showcase them to other players. Some companies do more, giving banners or helping with fees, but few that I’m aware of. Then there are those that force you to buy the entire line of products for that year to remain on the sponsored list, even if you don’t need it.

To me, that’s not a sponsor, that’s a discounter. Sure, getting gear you might want to play with at a reasonable rate is cool and all, but the strings attached to it have made me want to distance myself from the whole sponsorship thing. Here is what I have come to consider some dark strings when it comes to sponsors.

1. The Defender – I’ve seen this a lot on forums such as PBNation. When a team gets sponsored, they often feel the need to defend that sponsor in whatever they do to anyone they come across. Some groups take this to the extreme and come off like whipping boys.

2. The Next Level – Without sponsors, many people feel they won’t be able to compete with other teams and need that sponsor to be considered a legitimate team. I think this is BS. Play hard, with honesty, and with a great attitude will win over people much more than having a list of sponsors. Winning also helps, but you don’t need sponsors to do that.

3. Part Time Job – I know a lot of people who have started a team, gotten sponsors and ended up quitting, some paintball altogether, because of the added stress and work of maintaining sponsors and teams. I don’t know of many people who can keep up that level of performance for very long without getting burned out.

4. The Proud – This is probably the worst I see with teams and players. Being sponsored makes them better than you. The egos I see in some players make me sick. I think this kind of thing is only bad for paintball as it turns off many players from continuing the sport.

Of course not everyone with sponsors is like this, sponsors can really help a team afford markers they might not be able to, make things like field costs and paint cheaper, and can help get them in the limelight. For me though, that is not what paintball is about. It is about playing with great people and having hard fought battles that we can joke about afterwards. We try to win, but when we lose we congratulate the other team and try harder next time. The moment that paintball becomes something that adds more stress to my life is the time to pull back and rethink my game plan. Many players and teams don’t and end up quitting paintball for good, which is a sad thing.