By ASVG Media
Adidas has signed a multiyear partnership with Unrivaled to become its official uniform and performance-apparel partner beginning with the 2027 season. Adidas will outfit all eight clubs, supply the league's camps and community programs and develop a wider licensed-merchandise business encompassing authentic jerseys and lifestyle collections. The agreement arrives as Unrivaled—founded by Napheesa Collier and Breanna Stewart—continues an extraordinary commercial expansion.
The business behind the sponsorship is even more important. Unrivaled recently completed an oversubscribed $100 million-plus Series C investment round valuing the league at approximately $650 million, nearly twice its previous $340 million valuation, while players retain significant equity participation. For African women's sport, the model deserves close attention: athletes are not simply providing the entertainment while somebody else owns the asset—they are helping build, own and commercialize the property itself. Combining athlete equity with sponsorship, merchandise, media and youth programming provides a potentially powerful template for creating women's sports businesses rather than treating women's competitions principally as development programs.
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