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Adidas May Be Coming To The NHL: Jersey Overhaul

By Patrick Helper

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I guess it shouldn’t come as a shock. Reebok’s parent company Adidas wants in on the NHL action and they could be setting things up to make a big splash. There are reports by several respected media outlets that Adidas is close to becoming the new designer of NHL jerseys. This news is not too far behind the speculation that the NHL will bring advertisements to their jerseys.

"If you’re already deciding on a major NHL jersey overhaul, maybe with Adidas striping on the jerseys, then it seems like it would be a good time to introduce the ads, if you plan to do it anyway. [Pro Hockey Talk via TSN]"

Among the changes NHL fans could see is the Adidas three strips making an appearance in the jerseys. Something that is not shocking as in today’s world branding is just as important as who wears the jerseys.

This move is the right thing for both Adidas and the NHL. Both stand to make more money and for Adidas this will properly a line their brand. Reebok has become more of a get in shape brand and less of an athletic competition brand over the years. There are still a fair amount of players using Reebok apparel but it seems that too could be changing. If Adidas is taking over jerseys they will want top athletes to make a changes too.

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One speculated player that could be changing brands is Sidney Crosby. After all in many ways he always belongs to Adidas just another division of the company. Don’t be fooled there is big money in this move, and as a TSN article said; “At an investor day earlier this year King said he wanted to make Adidas “cool” again. The company, which has a partnership with rapper Kanye West, will relocate 75 designers, developers and marketing executives from Germany to the U.S., King said, adding Adidas will run its biggest ever ad campaigns over the next three years.”

"Granted, sweaters already have a key “ad” on them beyond a team logo: the brand name for whoever makes the jersey. It sounds as though Adidas may want to implement its iconic three-stripe trademark in some form. Westhead reports that the deal could double the NHL’s takeaway compared to its current agreement, so that would likely dull the sting of controversy over such an implementation for the league. [PHT]"

The NHL wants new teams and a new look; well they are about to get something new. If Adidas has their way and the strips land on a jersey we could be looking at two advertisements per jersey. There were reports that the NHL expects jersey advertising to make each team around $4 million dollars.

I guess it’s good to be the NHL right about now. One thing however… What about the people who bought a McDavid jersey or another other player this year? I say refund!

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