Rivals turned partners.
Progressive Insurance is now the presenting sponsor of the Miami-Florida State rivalry matchup.
Miami Athletics announced the multi-year deal on Thursday, marking an innovative partnership between the in-state rivals
The insurance company will focus on activating and generating engagement in South Florida ahead of this season’s game which will take place at Hard Rock Stadium.
However, this partnership isn’t solely limited to when the sides square off in week 7 on Oct. 17.
Starting this season, Progressive logos will be displayed on the field during every home game at both the Hurricanes’ Hard Rock Stadium and the Seminoles’ Doak S. Campbell Stadium.
“Few rivalries in college sports carry the passion, history and statewide significance of Miami vs. Florida State,” UM Chief Revenue Officer Jesse Marks said. “Progressive’s partnership allows us to build on that tradition while creating an innovative model for how brands can engage with our fans.”
In a college football landscape that’s routinely becoming business oriented, Miami is selling from a position of strength.
The Canes played for a national title in January, beating Texas A&M, Ohio State and Ole Miss on their path in the College Football Playoff before losing to Indiana 27-21 at Hard Rock Stadium.
Miami participated in five of the 17 most-watched college football games last season, with its national championship and quarterfinal games ranking as the first and third most watched games respectively.
There is a reason behind the move to add more sponsorships.
On July 1, 2025, schools began to pay their athletes directly as a result of the House settlement, with a cap around $20.5 million per school this year and projections to rise to $33 million by 2035.
The cap is determined based on what schools’ average in media, ticket, and sponsorship revenue — prompting schools to find new ways to generate revenue to compete.
Field sponsorship itself is new territory.
The NCAA only recently approved sponsor logos on the playing surface for regular-season games. Each school gets three spots: one at midfield and two smaller ones wherever the program chooses.
This month alone, Progressive has purchased logos for 13 other programs, most of which are for one school at a time.
Legends Global brokered the deal alongside both schools, which has become a pattern with the University of Miami.
Legends has been handling Miami’s multimedia rights since 2021 and began offering sponsorship, ticketing and fundraising services in 2023. It took over venue management at the Watsco Center in February of this year and negotiated the agreement with Ticketmaster in July.
Progressive is the third deal Legends has brokered in the last seven months.
The two programs have rarely played nice with one another in their historic rivalry. Now they share a sponsor.