South Carolina Board of Trustees places apparel agreement on agenda for Friday meeting

The future of apparel for the South Carolina Gamecocks has been up in the air for some time now. Now, it looks like answers could be on the horizon. Reportedly, the South Carolina Board of Trustees has placed an apparel agreement on the agenda for their Friday meeting.

South Carolina has had an apparel agreement with Under Armour. That deal lasted 10 years. However, it is now set to expire next summer, and the Gamecocks either need to find a way to extend their deal with Under Armour or find a new company to do their apparel moving forward.

Under its current agreement with Under Armour, South Carolina has been provided apparel since June 30, 2016, and it will run through June 30, 2026. There was some pretty significant cash involved in that deal too. The Gamecocks got a $2 million signing bonus, which went along with $24.5 million in rights fees. South Carolina baseball had an additional $500,000 in rights fees. Then, there was $44.5 million in product allowance.

Notably, the current deal that South Carolina has with Under Armour does have an interesting note. It prohibits the school from meeting with or negotiating another apparel deal with a competitor more than 180 days out from the end of the agreement. That’s January 1, 2026. So, if the Board of Trustees is going to hear a new deal presented, it likely would be a kind of extension with Under Armour.

On top of that, Under Armour has the right of first refusal. That means that if South Carolina were to receive a competing offer, Under Armour has the ability to match that agreement within 15 days. If they do match the agreement, then the school is obligated to resign with Under Armour.

Recently, in the SEC, Tennessee made the decision to leave Nike for Adidas. In that agreement, the school will be paid $1.2 million in base compensation in 2025-26 and $4.5 million in annual product allotment. On top of that, the agreement calls for a multi-million dollar NIL component. That means NIL opportunities for athletes at Tennessee through Adidas.

Now, it will be interesting to see if South Carolina looks for a new apparel deal that is structured similarly to the one Tennessee signed with Adidas. Fans are going to have their own preference, largely based on the apparel that they prefer to wear. However, it’s going to fall on the athletic department and the Board of Trustees to find the best deal possible for the school.