Nike Will be the exclusive uniform and apparel supplier of the National Basketball Association and the Women’s National Basketball Association for another 12 years The league announced Monday after renewing its partnership with the sneaker giant.
Under the terms of the agreement, Nike will become the alliance’s global equipment, sales, marketing and content partner until 2037.
Nike’s last contract with the Basketball League began during the 2017-18 NBA season and was reportedly worth $1 billion Mark as first time Apparel partners put their logos on NBA or WNBA jerseys. It’s unclear how much Nike’s renewed contract with the league is worth, but a source familiar with the deal described it as “significantly larger” than the previous deal.
As the world’s largest sportswear company, Nike has long been a favorite among professional sports leagues and their athletes. Even so, the sneaker giant has to work harder to maintain its key partnerships as it renews its contract with the NBA as new CEO Elliott Hill attempts to recapture the Lost market share.
Nike is also the official uniform supplier to the NFL and Major League Baseball, but those relationships have taken a hit as the company faces criticism of declining sales and lagging behind on innovation.
The NFL’s agreement with Nike is set to expire after the 2027 season, but the league has opened the process to other bidders and is already in talks with several companies interested in competing for the deal, a source told CNBC.
Nike’s contract with Major League Baseball does not expire until 2029. The suit was see-through and didn’t fit well. ESPN reports then.
Despite Nike’s recent setbacks, the NBA told CNBC it has no concerns about continuing its partnership with the apparel company.
“From our perspective, we have 100 percent confidence in Nike’s long-term growth globally,” said Sal LaRocca, NBA President of Global Partnerships. “They are unique players in basketball. For over 30 years, they have been They have always been our partners in some form.”
LaRocca added that the partnership was so strong that the league did not even open the process to other bidders.
When asked about the MLB fiasco, LaRocca defended Negi and said such issues were relevant to the region.
“I think any company that’s on the edge of innovation and always looking to push the envelope to make improvements is likely to run into some unintended consequences,” LaRocca said.
Nike’s basketball uniforms haven’t received major criticism. “You’ll definitely see their fresh produce on a regular basis,” LaRocca said.
Nike has had marketing partnerships with the NBA since 1992 and the WNBA since its inception in 1997, and the brand has endorsed most of the league’s greatest players, including LeBron James, Kyle Vin Durant, Caitlin Clark and Sabrina Ionescu.
Nike shares were down about 24% this year as of Friday’s close, lagging rivals and the S&P 500, which is up about 23% this year. About running and DexThe two companies stole market share from Nike, growing 79% and 43% respectively.
Historically, Nike has outperformed the S&P 500 by about 8% on average.
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