This is somewhat old news, but it’s not going to get any more fresh the longer I wait, right? And yes, it killed me for the post title to start with a lowercase letter.
With Michigan’s athletic department the beneficiary of an apparel contract with adidas, their foray into the lacrosse world had been a Big Deal for the Michigan Lacrosse program. The German manufacturer made Michigan its most prominently-displayed program for lacrosse advertising, even though Notre Dame – another adidas school, this one with a varsity lacrosse program – was also available (though their current site features more Notre Dame imagery than Michigan).
Adidas Evolve Advertisement Featuring Michigan
So down the road, it may be significant to the Wolverines if this rumor comes to fruition:
TheKyleDevitte @LaxAllStars nothing huge to report. Big rumor is that adidas is getting out of lax; they’re selling stuff here for pennies on the dollar.
(HT: 412 Lax) That report came from the LaxCon event in Baltimore at the end of January (DeVitte covers lacrosse for several outlets). From the sounds of it, that means equipment, not necessarily cleats and apparel. I’ve followed up with Kyle, and will update when I get a response – though it’s worth noting that the Irish are wearing new 2011 model adidas gear this season.
I certainly don’t have the audacity to say that Michigan potentially going varsity has enough power to save adidas’s lacrosse brand, but someone with knowledge of the Wolverines’ varsity lacrosse proposal did forward me this key sentence when I asked him about adidas’s lacrosse brand:
adidas is pursuing an organic growth strategy to enter the market, and has chosen to tie the success of their brand with that of Michigan lacrosse.
So… maybe? (Also tying a brand to “Michigan destroying the club lacrosse world” was probably a pretty good idea over the last couple years) It remains to be seen whether the Wolverines will even announce a Division-1 program, and whether Michigan and Notre Dame – even with all their brand cachet (easily the two biggest Q-ratings in college athletics, with the likes of Duke and USC not far behind) – can save the three-striped ones.
Stay tuned.
I had heard in the past that the none of the adidas designers were actually in house. That they just threw the 3 stripes on a 3rd parties gear that had the best bid. The other thing I heard was that the manufacturing was all being done a few of the facilities that Warrior cut ties with for poor craftsmanship. It sounded like it was doomed from the start a few years ago. I’ll be shocked if it survives as a brand.
Definitely wouldn’t surprise me if adidas had never been fully invested in lacrosse, but at the same time, if they’re willing to try (for 3 years only) and fail, what does it say about
1) the viability of the lacrosse gear market to broader America, and
2) who Michigan will get their gear from in the near future (varsity or not)
?
It’s the fastest growing youth sport in the country. There is a reason why New Balance, Nike, Reebok and Adidas got into it. I think Adidas may be going about it the wrong way. The numbers and the volume will be in the youth market with beginner stick and youth padding. I know they have some entry level stuff, but I’ve never seen it marketed nor stocked anywhere.
Keep in mind, however, that Michigan also has a sponsorship with Warrior. Even now, Michigan’s new helmets, sticks, and shafts all come from Warrior. If adidas does discontinue the lacrosse line, the only difference for Michigan from an actual game apparel would be in the arm pads and gloves. My guess is Warrior would be the one to pick up that slack.
Regardless of the equipment, if adidas got out of lacrosse, the soft goods (i.e. jerseys, etc), would still be a question mark. Would lacrosse be the only UM sport to not be outfitted by adidas? I think the more likely situation is that adidas’s pullout from the sport is (a little) overstated.
Warrior makes everything Michigan would need. Moreover, the main facility is right in Michigan, and not too far of a drive. Nevertheless, this chirping of Adidas getting out of lax has actually been around for even longer than what was stated above, but it’s more based on the viability of the brand and success of the lines, which has been less than to be desired for a while from many consumers. Some companies create a buzz like this to stir up attention, so it’s best to just wait to see what actually happens because nothing has happened in over a year now since I first heard about them dropping.