In a year that has been marked by transition and upheaval, one
aspect of the UCLA athletic department is on solid footing.
The university’s lucrative six-year, $18.95 million
partnership with Adidas has been a tremendous boost for both sides
““ so much so that an extension could be in the works
soon.
Though both Nike and Reebok will likely make formal offers to
UCLA before the current deal expires in 2005, the athletic
department plans to remain with Adidas if it can produce a
comparable bid.
“I have been delighted with our association with
Adidas,” said Glenn Toth, UCLA’s associate athletic
director in charge of corporate development. “When we
determine that it is time to start putting out feelers regarding
who might be interested in our next shoe-apparel contract, we
certainly hope Adidas will be a player in that.”
A shoe-apparel contract offsets what would be a hard-dollar
expense for the university ““ supplying the athletic
department with money and equipment. Every UCLA squad is currently
outfitted with Adidas products, and the money is not ear-marked for
any particular expense, but is put towards the department’s
general operating fund.
Toth indicated that the university would like to begin working
on a new deal by January and have a contract in place by the start
of the 2004-2005 school year ““ preferably one that would be
nearly identical to the current one.
“If any changes are made, they will be minor ones,”
Toth said. “I would be disappointed if we couldn’t
negotiate a slight (financial) increase from what we have right
now, but I don’t know what market forces will be in effect
when we finally nail down an extension from Adidas or a contract
from somebody else.”
Given the footholds that Adidas has already established in
Westwood, it would be advantageous for both sides if they were able
to hammer out a deal.
Unlike Nike, which has a crowded stable of schools that it
sponsors, Adidas only has an umbrella contract with six
universities ““ UCLA, Notre Dame, Tennessee, Arizona State,
Nebraska, and Wisconsin. That was a major factor in UCLA’s
decision to replace Reebok with Adidas instead of Nike back in
1998.
“At the time we were evaluating the decision, Nike had 39
schools and Adidas had four,” Toth said. “It was
definitely more appealing to be one-of-five than
one-of-forty.”
If UCLA did decide to switch schools, the transition would be
extremely difficult.
A contract with either Reebok or Nike would have to be finalized
by October of 2004 to order products and equipment in time for the
fall season.
That would mean the school would still have to deal with Adidas
for a full year while waiting for the contract to expire, which
could be problematic since Adidas would have little incentive to
serve UCLA to the best of its ability.
Another potential issue would be the necessity of ordering
all-new Nike or Reebok products for every sport rather than
replacing items on a fill-in basis.
“The first year of a transition is always more complicated
because you are ordering everything,” Toth said. “There
are many items that teams order in the first year, and then are not
ordered in subsequent years.”
Toth indicated that he has never had anyone at Adidas express
dissatisfaction with the current contract ““ even as the UCLA
men’s basketball team struggled through a horrific 10-win
season this year ““ and that he expects the shoe apparel giant
to be ready to foot the bill.
Adidas Director of Sports Marketing Kevin Wolf was unavailable
for comment, but it would be unlikely that Adidas would let the
UCLA contract escape without a fight.
The Bruins have a successful track record in the major sports
and offer Adidas significant television exposure. Furthermore,
Adidas representative Sonny Vaccaro, one of college
basketball’s most powerful figures, has a well-documented
friendship with basketball coach Ben Howland, and UCLA is the
corporation’s only link to the lucrative Southern California
market.
With all of that in mind, it is difficult to find anyone within
the UCLA athletic department ““ player, coach or administrator
““ with anything negative to say about Adidas.
“If Adidas is giving us money, I think we have to take
care of them,” women’s basketball coach Kathy Olivier
said. “Even outside of coaching, you will rarely see me
wearing Reebok or Nike. I’m all Adidas all the
way.”