Wisconsin reaches new deal with Under Armour for 10 years, total value of $104.5 million

MADISON — The Wisconsin Badgers will have Under Armour as their official outfitter for another decade, and it comes with some favorable terms for the Badgers.

The new contract, which the UW Board of Regents approved without objection on Nov. 25, goes for 10 years and has a total value of $104.5 million when including cash and product at retail pricing. That is up from the total value of $96.75 million in the current 10-year contract with Under Armour, which expires after the 2025-26 season.

“I think it just directly points to the strength of our brand and the partnership that we’ve had with Under Armour,” UW deputy athletics director Mitchell Pinta told the Journal Sentinel shortly after the vote. “We believe in them, they believe in us and I think this new agreement really exemplifies that. And we’ve also been able to evolve together.”

The renewed Under Armour contract looks different in some key areas than the initial agreement that went into effect in 2016. Instead of a $4 million annual rights fee, UW will receive $3.8 million annually. But the Badgers are deriving increased value in many other ways.

UW’s annual product allotment will increase from $3.05 million in wholesale pricing to $3.2 million, according to documents provided to the Board of Regents ahead of the vote.

The guaranteed minimum in royalties is up from $450,000 annually to $500,000, and the licensing royalty will start at 16.5% of net sales and increase up to 25%. That is higher than the current cap of 15%.

“Everything that we’ve done in this deal is, ‘How can we continue to invest more in Wisconsin athletics and continue to create more value for our athletic department?’” Pinta said. “You look at the investment that Under Armour has made over the last several years when it comes to apparel and lifestyle. … Obviously any lift that you can get on the royalty side is always a positive.”

Pinta also believes that the “value of this deal goes far beyond the numbers.”

“We are extremely proud of the growth that we’re able to see in this deal, both on the cash and the product side,” Pinta said. “But there’s so many other things in this deal that are important to us, whether it’s the internships piece, whether it’s the investment in NIL.”

The contract includes an annual minimum of $175,000 in spending by Under Armour to UW athletes for endorsements and appearances, and Pinta said there is “even more to it than probably what you see in the fine print.”

“I think that number that you pointed to is really just scratching the surface of what we’re going to be able to continue to do with Under Armour in the NIL space,” Pinta said. “Obviously being able to create NIL opportunities for our student-athletes is more important than it’s ever been and allows us to be competitive. And when you work with an on-field apparel partner like Under Armour, they understand the NIL space as well as anyone and are willing to invest with us in that area.”

Wisconsin’s other perks in the agreement, according to regents documents, include continued internship opportunities at Under Armour, $75,000 for marketing, the framework necessary if the NCAA allows jersey patches and “additional special uniforms” for volleyball and women’s hockey. (The previous contract already had that for football, men’s and women’s basketball and men’s hockey.)

“Some of these elements too are just memorializing things that we’ve been doing,” Pinta said. “Our volleyball team this year actually has an alternate jersey. So it allows us to get more creative on what we’re doing with some of our teams.”

While the various ways of measuring value of outfitting agreements can make it hard to make an apples-to-apples comparison, UW’s renewal with Under Armour appears to be favorable compared to some of its power-conference peers.

South Carolina’s new 10-year deal with Nike consists of at least $70 million in product, $5 million in cash and $2.5 million in supplemental product, according to a report by The State earlier this year. Kentucky’s new deal with Nike consists of $72.5 million in product and no cash. Both have 15% royalties, and Kentucky has a favorable minimum royalty payment.

“We’re really excited to continue to build upon what’s been a really, really successful first 10 years of our partnership,” Pinta said. “And to be able to continue that for the next decade with a partner who has been really incredible in investing in Wisconsin athletics and supporting our student-athletes — we couldn’t be more proud.”

This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Wisconsin reaches deal with Under Armour for 10 years, $104.5 million