It's official: Notre Dame extends apparel contract with Under Armour
The University of Notre Dame’s athletic gear will be manufactured by the same supplier that has been paired with the Fighting Irish for the last 10 years for the next 10 as well. Notre Dame and Under Armour have officially extended their contract for another decade, UA announced Friday.
Yahoo Sports’ Ross Dellenger reported earlier in the week that this was a done deal. Dellenger said it could be the richest collegiate athletics sponsorship in the country. Terms of the contract have not been released.
Notre Dame and Under Armour first struck a blockbuster deal in 2014. At that time, it was also believed that the two parties had the richest apparel agreement in the nation then. It was quickly bumped down the list when other blue bloods in college athletics like Texas inked mega deals with Nike, which is the industry leader in collegiate apparel contracts in terms of total number of schools being supplied.
Under Armour is nowhere near Nike in that regard. According to a 2021 report from Boardroom, Nike supplied 68 FBS schools with their gear. Adidas was second in volume with 37, and Under Armour was third with 17.
Other universities that receive athletic apparel from Under Armour include Wisconsin, South Carolina, Auburn and Texas Tech. Nike, meanwhile, is teamed up with the likes of Alabama, Clemson, Georgia, LSU, Ohio State and so many others. Adidas’ top partners include Miami, Nebraska and Texas A&M among 30 others.
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It still seemed like Nike and Adidas were never true players in Notre Dame’s recent negotiations in trying to find an apparel supplier. Irish athletics director Jack Swarbrick said in June those two companies were on the table in addition to a possible re-upping with Under Armour, but in the same interview with Blue & Gold he listed a variety of reasons why he was pleased with the last 10 years with Under Armour and why future partnership with UA was likely.
Swarbrick, whose son, Cal, is a high-ranking executive with Under armour, said Under Armour’s devotion to Notre Dame’s student-athletes has been second to none. In the end, it matters less what logo is on the players’ chests and more the quality of the product and a dedication to making sure everything is up to elite standard.
Irish student-athletes can speak on those matters themselves. The reality is, there will be another decade of UA working in lockstep with Notre Dame.
