University of Miami Officially Announces Adidas Deal: Final Thoughts

Today UM officially announced the new partnership with Adidas.

Official Statement from The University of Miami:

MIAMI (January 8, 2015) – Adidas and the University of Miami today announced a landmark 12-year partnership making Adidas the official athletic footwear, apparel and accessory brand of the Hurricanes through June of 2027.

“The University of Miami was the first college program to excel as a national brand with championship play on the field, changing the game of college athletics,” said Mark King, Adidas Group North America president.  “Their unmatched success, national relevance and cultural significance make them a perfect fit for Adidas as we continue to significantly invest and grow our business in the U.S.  Florida is a key battleground and home to some of the best athletic talent in the country.  We’re proud to have Miami as a key pillar of our future business.”

“The University of Miami is thrilled to partner with Adidas, a world-class organization whose creativity, technology and quality have made it among the world's leaders in athletic apparel,” said Blake James, Director of Athletics for the University of Miami.  “The multi-year agreement will enable us to enhance our student-athlete experience by providing top-quality apparel and equipment to our students and coaches in addition to adding significant resources to support our Department.  Our new partnership will help expand the UM brand locally, nationally and globally and will help Miami to continue to be one of the nation's premier athletic programs."

The partnership, which makes the University of Miami one of Adidas’ 13 licensed NCAA programs, begins on September 1, 2015 and includes investment, product and uniform development for all 18 intercollegiate Hurricane athletics programs.

Adidas partners hailing from the University of Miami include NFL stars Jimmy Graham of the New Orleans Saints, Frank Gore of the San Francisco 49ers and U.S. Olympic hurdler T'erea Brown.

“It is an exciting day for the brand I love and my university,” said Graham, class of 2009.  “Adidas brings sports and culture together and that is a perfect fit for the U and the city of Miami.”

Adidas is the official uniform and apparel provider for the National Basketball Association and Major League Soccer and develops high-performance footwear, apparel and accessories for more than 70 collegiate programs including Michigan, Texas A&M, UCLA, Nebraska, Wisconsin, Louisville, Mississippi State, Indiana, Kansas, Cincinnati, North Carolina State and Arizona State.

Final Thoughts: Like most I initially looked at this move as a total money grab.  But in the past few days whispers (unconfirmed) have come out that Nike was A) Low balling UM on the new deal.  B) Had been treating the Hurricanes' programs with less priority than other programs with perhaps (current) higher profiles.  Additionally Adidas had looked at this as a chance to get themselves more recognizable by landing a name brand, and thus would try a lot of new/cutting edge designs and products with Miami.

So in the end this becomes a no brainer.  If one company treats like a second class citizen and the other is courting you like Jerry Macguire did Rod Tidwell, well the choice is easy.

Overall this shouldn't be too big of a deal.

Let's hope UM spends the new money wisely.