Since the recording of Donald Sterling’s racially offensive statements was leaked, there have been different reactions from people and companies across the nation. Before it was announced that Donald Sterling was banned for life, sponsors were dropping like flies, just as the Los Angeles Clippers head into the playoffs. Many of the team’s major sponsors had either dropped or suspended their affiliation with the Clippers. For companies that are indirectly involved, it is best to distance themselves from such public outrage as soon as possible. Those that have dropped the Clippers include CarMax, who sponsored the Clippers for nine years. Others that have dropped or suspended their ties with the team include Kia, Mercedes Benz USA, Virgin America, and State Farm. The release of this recording could cost the Los Angeles Clippers and the NBA millions of dollars.

Athletes are often signed for endorsement deals and used in ads for different companies, but they also tend to make mistakes on the very public stage of being a celebrity athlete. For example, Lance Armstrong was dropped by a series of companies and campaigns, the most prominent one being Nike, after his doping scandal. Other company owners have also been caught with loose tongues, Chick-fil-A owner Dan Cathy’s homophobic comments and his stance against marriage equality brought the company weeks of protesters to their locations across the country. The previous examples are not even a fraction of the arrogance from CEOs and board members of major U.S. companies over the years, but shows that if your personal opinions differ from those of the public it could cost your company a lot of money.

Now that the NBA has come out with their “Sterling banned for life” announcement, it will be interesting to see if the sponsors come back or if they are still wary. And also, is the ban enough? The fine is pocket change to a man with a net worth of $1.9 billion, but maintaining ownership of the team is a constant reminder of Sterling’s ignorance. Hopefully, as rumored potential buyer Magic Johnson put it, “the other 29 [NBA franchise] owners do the right thing” and vote to force Sterling to sell the Clippers. Only time will tell.