BALTIMORE, Dec. 5, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, Under
Armour (NYSE: UA, UA.C), Fanatics and Major League Baseball (MLB)
announce a 10-year partnership that names the global performance
brand as the official uniform provider to MLB, marking Under
Armour's first-ever professional league uniform deal. The three
organizations joining together introduces a new revolutionary model
defined by its vision for–and investment in–serving millions of
fans and players at all stages of the game. The collaborative
partnership will provide cutting-edge on-field apparel for players,
as well as the most responsive and significant merchandise
assortment ever available for fans.
Beginning in the 2020 MLB season, Under Armour will be the
exclusive MLB provider of all on-field uniform components including
jerseys featuring prominent Under Armour branding, baselayer,
game-day outerwear, and year-round training apparel for all 30 MLB
Clubs. Fanatics, a global leader of licensed sports
merchandise, will be granted broad consumer product licensing
rights to manage the manufacturing and distribution of Under Armour
and Fanatics fan gear, which include jerseys at retail, name &
number products and Postseason apparel. Under Armour and Fanatics
expect to offer an assortment of new fan gear apparel and
accessories at retail, prior to the 2020 season.
Under Armour's mission of making all athletes better through
passion, design and the relentless pursuit of innovation will be
apparent through all aspects of this partnership. In addition to
innovative on-field uniforms, Under Armour will provide exclusive
Connected Fitness offerings to MLB teams, which will power and
provide athletes with state-of-the-art technology designed to
inform and strengthen player performance.
"Under Armour is proud of our long-standing relationship with
MLB and we look forward to this exciting next chapter. This is a
watershed moment for the Under Armour brand as this partnership
with MLB and Fanatics furthers our collective dedication to
bringing passion, energy and innovation to the game of baseball,"
said Kevin Plank, Founder and CEO,
Under Armour. "Under Armour's goal is to engage and excite MLB's
incredibly diverse fan-base across America and around the world,
and grow the game for the next generation of great athletes."
The intensity, excitement and unscripted dramatic appeal of the
game — demonstrated by another thrilling MLB postseason and the
historic 2016 World Series — has driven global growth and
popularity for MLB. Positioning a historic sport institution and
its constant drive to expand fans' access points to the game
through technology innovation, alongside a young, fearless and
driven sports brand and best-in-class licensing experts, provides
enormous opportunity to grow every level of the game through this
strategic partnership.
"We are excited to build on our partnership with Under Armour, a
powerful global brand that continues to grow exponentially, and
Fanatics, an industry leader in sports licensing," said
Commissioner Robert D. Manfred, Jr.
"Under Armour's marketing ability and brand status are a perfect
fit to showcase our players and provide an even stronger connection
between our game and its young fans and players. We appreciate
Majestic's many contributions to our clubs, players and fans
throughout our partnership."
"This partnership epitomizes our next-generation model which
brings much-needed agility to the industry, enhancing both
assortment and speed-to-market of MLB merchandise for teams, fans
and retailers," said Michael Rubin,
executive chairman of Fanatics. "Both Fanatics and Under Armour get
to do what each does best, while joining forces with an innovative
and tech-savvy league to help grow the game of baseball through a
pioneering new business model better suited to today's digital
economy."
Under Armour is a well-established partner of MLB, dating back
to 2000 as an official baselayer supplier. The brand took the field
with their first baseball cleat collection in 2006 and became the
official performance footwear partner of MLB in 2011. Under Armour
currently has over 400 individual athlete partnerships across the
major and minor leagues, including 2012 National League MVP Buster
Posey, 2014 National League MVP and three-time National League Cy
Young Award winner Clayton Kershaw,
2015 National League MVP Bryce Harper, 2016 All-Star Game MVP Eric
Hosmer and 2016 American League Cy Young Award winner Rick Porcello. Fanatics also has a long
partnership history with MLB, dating back to 2002. This historic
partnership will commence in the 2020 MLB season.
About Under Armour, Inc.
Under Armour (NYSE: UA, UA.C), the originator of performance
footwear, apparel and equipment, revolutionized how athletes across
the world dress. Designed to make all athletes better, the brand's
innovative products are sold worldwide to athletes at all levels.
The Under Armour Connected Fitness™ platform powers the world's
largest digital health and fitness community through a suite of
applications: UA Record, MapMyFitness, Endomondo and MyFitnessPal.
The Under Armour global headquarters is in Baltimore, Maryland. For further information,
please visit the Company's website at www.uabiz.com.
About Fanatics
Fanatics is the global leader for officially licensed sports
merchandise. As a Top 50 Internet Retailer Company, Fanatics
comprises the broadest online assortment by offering hundreds of
thousands of officially licensed items via its Fanatics, FansEdge
and Kitbag brands, as well as the largest selection of sports
collectibles and memorabilia through Fanatics Authentic. A
multi-channel company, Fanatics operates more than 300 online and
offline stores, including the e-commerce business for all major
professional sports leagues (MLB, MLS, NASCAR, NBA, NFL, NHL, PGA),
major media brands (NBC Sports, CBS Sports, FOX Sports) and more
than 200 collegiate and professional team properties, which include
several of the biggest global soccer clubs (Manchester United, Real
Madrid, Chelsea, Manchester City). Fanatics Branded, the
company's in-house merchandise division and licensed partner with
all the major sports leagues, helps fans express passion with
unique styles and designs. The company's in-venue and event retail
portfolio includes the NBA, NHL, MLB, NASCAR, Kentucky Derby, The
Ryder Cup, Manchester City, Texas Longhorns,
Pittsburgh Pirates and New Jersey Devils among others, allowing
fans to experience a seamless shopping experience across online,
mobile and physical store locations.
About MLB
MLB is the most historic professional sports league in the United States and consists of 30 member
clubs in the U.S. and Canada,
representing the highest level of professional baseball. It is the
best-attended sport in North
America, and since 2004, MLB has enjoyed its best-attended
seasons in the history of the game, with each regular season
eclipsing the 73 million mark. Now led by Commissioner Robert D. Manfred, Jr., MLB currently features
record levels of labor peace, competitive balance and industry
revenues, as well as the most comprehensive drug-testing program in
American professional sports. MLB remains committed to making an
impact in the communities of the U.S., Canada and throughout the world, perpetuating
the sport's larger role in society and permeating every facet of
baseball's business, marketing and community relations endeavors.
With the continued success of MLB Advanced Media and MLB Network,
MLB continues to find innovative ways for its fans to enjoy
America's National Pastime and a truly global game. For more
information on MLB, visit www.MLB.com.
Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161204/445360
To view the original version on PR Newswire,
visit:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/under-armour-fanatics-and-mlb-invigorate-global-sports-landscape-with-a-new-groundbreaking-partnership-300372677.html
SOURCE Under Armour, Inc.