PayPal’s Paperless Play

PayPal announced a 10-year corporate partnership with the San Jose Earthquakes that marks what could be a shift toward using services like PayPal for contactless transactions in stadiums worldwide.

The Earthquakes’ stadium — only 3 miles from PayPal’s headquarters — will now be called PayPal Park, and it’s set to serve as more than a billboard for the company. 

Earlier this year, some professional teams, including the Dodgers and Yankees, went cashless at their concession stands, hoping to slow the spread of germs and viruses. Many others have required digital tickets rather than paper for the same reason.

Beyond simply offering contactless payment, the Earthquakes’ stadium will also have express lines and rewards programs for those who use digital payment.

“It is going to be a total game-changer as far as how the sport is perceived in this market and how our stadium is perceived on a national level,” said Jared Shawlee, the Earthquakes’ chief operating officer.

QR codes will play a significant role in the stadium’s consumer payment infrastructure.

“We’ve got 600,000 retail locations live with QRC now,” said Jill Cress, PayPal’s vice president of consumer marketing. “We think stadiums are a great opportunity to do this in a really concentrated way and highlight this technology.”

PayPal recorded net revenue of $45.46 billion in 2020. Square previously found that leisure and entertainment businesses going cashless rose from 14% to 48% during the period from March 1, 2020 to April 23, 2020.