MLB, Nike Announce 10-Year Uniform, Merchandise Contract

Ross D. Franklin/Associated Press

Major League Baseball and Nike agreed to a 10-year deal Friday that will make Nike the league’s official on-field apparel and merchandise designer beginning in 2020.

According to Eben Novy-Williams of Bloomberg, MLB and Under Armour originally agreed to a 10-year deal in 2016, but Under Armour later backed out, which opened the door for Nike.

Nike will replace Majestic, which is the current MLB jersey designer.

Nike will design all on-field apparel worn by MLB players, while Fanatics will distribute Nike’s MLB products to consumers as a partner.

Fanatics had been set for a similar role as part of the Under Armour deal as well.

While Nike is taking the lead, Under Armour won’t be completely out of the MLB picture since it remains one of the league’s footwear suppliers.

Nabbing the MLB license is a major coup for Nike as the current official jersey supplier for both the NFL and NBA.