Adidas’s early history is in international football, but in recent years, the brand has been throwing its weight behind American football—women’s tackle football, to be exact.
That is now set to continue. Adidas, which was one of the first sponsors of the Women’s National Football Conference (WNFC) during its inaugural season in 2019, is re-upping its deal with the league through 2028, WNFC founder and CEO Odessa Jenkins exclusively told Marketing Brew.
The relationship has been integral to the growth of the young league by aligning it with a recognizable sports brand, Jenkins said.
“Having the three stripes on your jersey and on your warm-ups puts you in a global conversation when it comes to pro sports that not many leagues get to be in,” she said. “Right away, from a legitimacy standpoint, it stamps you.”
Women’s football is on the rise in the US and is set to find an even bigger stage when flag football makes its Olympic debut at LA28. The expanded deal between Adidas and the WNFC signals the potential for sustainable brand interest in the sport as organizations like the NFL continue to push for the growth of the women’s game.
More than a jersey
As part of the deal, Adidas will remain the exclusive uniform and on-field apparel provider of the WNFC for the next three years, with the brand continuing to outfit athletes across the 16 teams in the league. In addition, the expansion includes collaborations between the two organizations to help grow the sport from the youth level.
The WNFC works with young athletes through its nonprofit organization Got Her Back; under the terms of the renewed deal, Adidas will supply apparel and gear to those players, too.
Adidas is set to provide custom uniforms and gear to the Varsity Top 100 Girls Flag Championship Tournament, and the brand will also continue to support Got Her Back clinics with products, according to the WNFC. Furthermore, Adidas and the WNFC will work together on creating content highlighting women’s football players from youth athletes to stars of the sport in an effort to continue boosting its popularity.
Get marketing news you’ll actually want to read
Marketing Brew informs marketing pros of the latest on brand strategy, social media, and ad tech via our weekday newsletter, virtual events, marketing conferences, and digital guides.
The brand is also set to have a bigger presence at the WNFC’s championship and all-pro games, Jenkins said.
Players aren’t the only ones who can wear WNFC gear with the three stripes—fans of the league will have access to branded Adidas apparel, too, Jenkins added. That could serve the league well: Women’s sports fans across the board have been showing an increasing appetite for merch, including fans of the WNFC.
“We have a growing fan shop, we have a growing fanbase, and they want to buy more stuff,” she said. “The ability to have that be Adidas team branded stuff is a big part of the deal.”
Spiral effect
The presence of Adidas, a global, endemic sports brand partner, beginning in the WNFC’s first year has helped create a sense of legitimacy for the league with other potential sponsors, Jenkins said. While Adidas and sports equipment company Riddell were its first partners, brands including Dove and Dick’s Sporting Goods have formed relationships with the league in years since.
Heading into the 2026 season, sponsorship and ticket revenue remain integral, as are media rights; for now, WNFC games are available on Victory+, a free ad-supported streaming service, which Jenkins said is ideal for the league as it works to build a fanbase.
The 2025 IX Cup, the WNFC’s championship, aired on ESPN2 in June, marking the league’s first live TV match-up, according to Jenkins. An audience of about 150,000 tuned in, she told us, and it has since sparked “a lot of great conversations” about rights. In the meantime, social channels provide the league with another way to reach and engage “hundreds of millions of people a year,” she said.
Coupled with brand and broadcaster interest, Jenkins said she expects the rising hype around flag football to contribute to additional buy-in women’s tackle football.
“Women and girls are driving the growth of flag football when it comes to participation and popularity,” she said. “Because of that, it’s creating awareness, but acceptance as well for girls and women to play football, and that’s all tackle football needed.”
September 16, 1944, in Wyandotte, Michigan, Bob lived a life marked by dedication to his family, his work, and his community.
