Bye-bye, sleeved jerseys. We can’t say you’ll be missed.
Adidas has elected against renewing its existing apparel contract with the NBA. Here’s Matthew Kish of the Portland Business Journal:
The German company has dropped its bid to extend its apparel contract with the league and instead will focus on developing new products, endorsing more amateur teams and doubling its roster of NBA players.
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A source familiar with the bidding process said Adidas made the decision after it was informed last week that the NBA planned to open the competition to other bids. The source noted Adidas has fallen behind its competitors.
The move by the NBA likely meant Adidas would have been a longshot to renew.
The German apparel giant inked the NBA to a 11-year, $400 million deal in 2006 that expires following the 2016-2017 season. Though the parties have reportedly been discussing a contract extension since 2012, adidas ultimately decided against formal negotiations not only due to the league involving other companies, but also because revenue gleaned from the current deal haven’t been as fruitful as expected.
Just because adidas won’t officially outfit the NBA, though, doesn’t mean it’s lessening an emphasis on basketball. In fact, the company says it will endorse even more individual players going forward.
“We haven’t been able to elevate our brand for the basketball consumer that we’re targeting,” Grancio said. “We ultimately decided that we would change our investment strategy and invest more in players on the court.”
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“We’re going to invest more money in basketball over the next five years than we ever have,” he said.
The decision to part with the NBA coincides with Adidas’ next five-year plan, which will be released in March and run until 2020.
“We thought now was the best time to finalize some key decisions,” Grancio said. “The NBA is a great partner. We think there are bigger opportunities in terms of player marketing and brand marketing.”
Nike and Under Armour are each expected to bid on the contract once adidas’ deal expires in 2017.
