Arizona State University announced a new partnership with Adidas on Tuesday. The athletic apparel manufacturer will be supplying the school’s athletic department with about $4 million in equipment per year from 2015 through the summer of 2023.
The move ends a more than nine-year agreement with Nike. Greg McElroy is the vice president of business development for ASU athletics. He said some of the motivation to switch can be attributed to customer service.
"We are just a number basically to our old partner," he said. "And that was the biggest thing. We wanted to be different, we want to stand out. We view ourselves as an elite university with an elite sports program and we wanted to be treated like one."
A new apparel supplier also means new uniform designs. McElroy said it’s too early to say exactly how they’ll look, but could reveal a few details.
"The color of the fabrics, the design that’s woven into the fabric," he said. "It shows one thing when you’re close up and it shows something when you’re 20 yards away and it shows something when you’re 100 yards away. All I can tell you is they’re very cool and stay tuned."
The deal is worth an estimated $33.8 million. ASU is one of 12 NCAA schools licensed with Adidas.