Marcus Freeman reacts to Notre Dame extending Under Armour deal
Late last month, Notre Dame extended its apparel deal with Under Armour for the next 10 years. It is “expected” to be the most lucrative deal in college athletics history, earning the Irish $10 million per year on the deal.
Head coach Marcus Freeman gave his reaction to the extension, noting that he’s pretty fond of the brand after wearing it for the past two years.
“The apparel deal. I’ve been in communication with Jack [Swarbrick] and I trust Jack’s work. And he’s going to do what’s best for Notre Dame. And that’s exactly what he’s done,” Freeman said on Saturday. “I love Under Armour. I’ve been wearing it for a long time. We’ve got a lot of Under Armour clothes for our children at the house that I’d like to be able to keep.
“So it’s been great, man. And Jack’s never going to put our athletic department in a bad situation. And that’s what he asked me. I said, ‘Jack, listen, I have no problem with Under Armour. I love Under Armour. And I know you’re going to do what’s right for our players and for athletic department.’ And that’s what he did.”
Notre Dame’s previous deal with Under Armour was set to expire in the summer of 2024, and was allowed to send feelers out to other brands like Nike and Adidas after the exclusive negotiating window expired. Ultimately, Under Armour was able to flex their money and keep the Irish from rebranding apparel-wise.
Originally, Notre Dame and the brand partnered back in 2014. The initially agreed a 10-year contract at the time that was worth up to $90 million. Now, the two entities will be intertwined for at least the next decade.
Getting the Irish back on board wasn’t always a done deal, however. Under Armour has notably cancelled its deals with west-coast based schools like Cal and Hawaii, but most notably UCLA. Boston College and Cincinnati, both Power Five conference schools, also ended their deals to sign with new brands as well.
At the very least, Notre Dame will be wearing Under Armour’s logo for at least the next 11 seasons.
They’ll be donning the UA crest when the Irish’s 2023 season kicks off in Dublin, Ireland as as a part of the Aer Lingus College Football Series. They’ll battle Navy on Aug. 26 for a special marquee Week Zero game inside Aviva Stadium. Kickoff is set for 2:30 p.m. ET, 7:30 p.m. local.