Sports can be sweaty, grimy, sometimes even bloody. And nothing washes all that down quite like a glass of chilled sauvignon blanc.
What was once the sole realm of the ice-cold beer contingent, the professional sports world the past few years has been embracing wine country—partnering with like-minded labels in official sponsorships linking the thrills of victory and agonies of defeat with a meaty zin or zesty Napa cab.
Earlier in the summer, the San Francisco Giants announced a partnership with Sonoma County Winegrowers in the new Giants Wine Club, in which members enjoy three releases per year, including six bottles from six different Sonoma County wineries chosen by the Giants’ new master sommelier. The team describes it as part of a commitment to providing “nothing like it” experiences. Perhaps a touch of Carneros char had something to do with the Giants’ late-season surge before missing out on a wild-card playoff spot—definitely a nothing-like-it experience for fans the past several seasons.
Meanwhile, down the street at Chase Center, the Golden State Valkyries in May announced its official wine partnership with Windsor’s La Crema, where the women-led winery matched well with the WNBA’s newest expansion franchise. Then in June, Healdsburg’s J Vineyards became the Valkyries’ sparkling wine sponsor, with the winery seeking to attach its brand to the red-hot team (the first WNBA expansion team to earn a playoff berth in its inaugural season), while “supporting women, celebrating empowerment and championing equality and inclusion” the winery said in an announcement of the partnership.
But these are just the latest franchises to jump on the wine wagon. Kendall-Jackson in 2024 partnered with the NBA to open a wine bar at the Warriors’ Golden 1 Center, along with other in-venue locations with the Nuggets, Magic, Suns, Pacers and Kings. Sonoma County Winegrowers partnered with the Houston Rockets in 2023.
Part of the connection stems from the plethora of professional athletes delving into wine. Current and former NBA athletes with labels include Carmelo Anthony, Dwyane Wade, CJ McCollum, Yao Ming and James Harden. Former Warriors favorite (now with the Dallas Mavs) Klay Thompson launched the Diamond & Key label in 2022. Baseball is close behind with former Giants Rich Aurilia, Dave Roberts and manager Dusty Baker starting their own labels.
And what about the NFL? Well, America’s most popular pro sports league is staying true to its more blue-collar roots and forgoing North Bay wine country in favor of a partnership with Modesto-based E&J Gallo, offering its bargain Barefoot label, which the league thinks will “make wine more approachable.” Approachable, perhaps. But affordable? At the 2025 Super Bowl, a glass of Barefoot ran attendees $15—about twice as much as a bottle of Barefoot costs at the grocery store.
