UM’s athletic department sealed a 12-year deal with Adidas to provide UM’s athletic programs with apparel in 2015.
To this day, it is the longest standing collegiate partnership in Adidas’ history.
Adidas has maintained a presence in collegiate athletics since the mid-1990s, but its reach was limited. The company mainly signed footwear sponsorships, backed smaller Division I programs and provided the occasional one-off contract. The 2015 deal with Miami marked the first time Adidas secured a comprehensive, long-term, all-sport apparel partnership with a major program.
Before the Adidas relationship, Miami was synonymous with the Nike brand — an original “Nike school” since 1987.
By ending the 28-year relationship with Nike, the Adidas-Miami deal shook the very foundations of college athletic apparel — which had become something of a Nike monopoly.
Miami tore up the swoosh playbook and handed it to Adidas.
Nike currently provides gear to more than half of the collegiate athletic programs in the U.S. — a figure Adidas looks to change.
Miami quickly became the blueprint for Adidas’ larger ambitions.
The brand didn’t want to just outfit athletes and see its emblem on the court and the field — it wanted to embed itself in collegiate athletic culture and influence how the game was played.
At the time, the deal was viewed as bold. Nike had long dominated the collegiate landscape, establishing deep ties with powerhouse schools like Oregon, Alabama and Texas. By taking over a nationally recognized brand like the University of Miami, Adidas proved it could compete directly with Nike in one of the most visible arenas of American sports.
That gamble has paid off.
Most recently, Adidas has signed a 10-year long contract with Penn State athletics, ending its 33 year long relationship with Nike. This new deal is reportedly worth $300 million and will include substantial investment in the athletic department, new NIL opportunities and technological advancements for student-athletes.
Through its NIL program, Adidas provides paid sponsorship opportunities to more than 50,000 student-athletes across the United States.
The Penn State deal is just the latest domino to fall in a long game commanded by Adidas. The brand has also signed Tennessee, Indiana, Arizona State and over 100 other NCAA Division I programs, luring several high-profile schools away from Nike.
But UM, and its historic 12-year deal with Adidas, set this in motion because Miami proved the brand could hold their own at the collegiate level.
The Hurricanes’ deal with Adidas has since resulted in millions of dollars in apparel investment, exclusive uniform designs and expanded branding for UM athletics and its student-athletes. Adidas has also collaborated with Miami specific campaigns, tapping into the school’s cultural connections in the South Florida community to push fashion-forward uniforms and lifestyle gear.
The German brand didn’t just partner with a university — they bought into a robust local community.
Just this year, Adidas signed on to outfit all 41 of Miami-Dade County High Schools’ athletics uniforms, cementing itself as the leading athletic apparel company in the community.
It has also produced several limited edition uniforms for the U, such as the “Parley for the Oceans” uniforms made from marine plastic waste, the “Miami Nights” designed to honor Miami’s night life, and the “Legend of the U” designs that paid homage to the community.
Miami’s contract with Adidas expires in 2027, but with the partnership having been so mutually beneficial, renewal seems likely.
UM didn’t just switch brands in 2015. The Hurricanes set a precedent and defined a new era. Now, a decade later, Adidas isn’t just gearing up athletes — it’s redefining the future. And it started at the U.
