"Inside Under Armour's 'Game-Changing' Notre Dame Deal"

From Athletic Business

Review by Rosella Sheehan in KIN 501
In January 2014, Notre Dame Athletics and Under Armour signed a deal that would make Under Armour the official outfitter of all twenty-six varsity sports at Notre Dame, over the next ten years. The deal is reportedly between $90 and $100 million dollars and is unique because it offers Notre Dame the opportunity to take some of the money in Under Armour stock. This deal is the largest sponsorship agreement ever by a university and it has been predicted that as a result of this sponsorship agreement, the Under Armour brand will increase in popularity. The contract with Under Armour begins July 1st, once the contract with Adidas expires (Allen, 2014).

From a sports marketing standpoint, the deal between Under Armour and Notre Dame is a good opportunity for Under Armour to grow as a brand. By placing the Under Armour brand on the uniforms of a nationally recognized university, the budding sports clothing and equipment company will reach a level of popularity only recently seen by brands such as Nike and Adidas.

Notre Dame leaving Adidas and signing with Under Armour may be a sign that brands such as Adidas are no longer the brands that universities and teams want to be wearing. Teams are always looking for the best brand that will help them generate success on the field and with Under Armour continuing to produce new technology for their products; they seem to be a brand that will place a team one step ahead of their competition. Finally, when looking at marketing campaigns for Under Armour, their main focus is on the effect the products will have on an athlete’s performance, whereas Nike and Adidas seem to focus largely on the products themselves or which athletes are wearing their brand. This is important to note because Jack Swarbrick, the Notre Dame Athletic Director, hopes that his student-athletes will become “guinea pigs” for new technology being released by Under Armour. 

 This article is relevant to this course because it is a prime example that in the business of college and professional sports, many times there is no brand loyalty for a team or program. As seen when Notre Dame signed a deal with Under Armour after being with Adidas since 1997 (Allen, 2014). Money seems to always be one of the most important factors when teams are looking for potential sponsors. As sport and recreation professionals, when we are given the opportunity to look for and make a deal with a sponsor, it is important that the deal is best for an organization’s current needs and does not only focus on what has been done in the past. Also, when looking for a particular brand or sponsor to work with, it is important that both sides benefit from the deal.