We’ve seen some of the new Nike MLB jerseys but not a full uniform yet. That was until the Diamondbacks unveiled their new uniforms for the upcoming season.
First of all, the team eliminated their snakeskin design (a huge plus) and went back to a standard road gray (an even bigger plus) and added an alternate cap/helmet with the snake head (great move).
Yesterday’s Golden State Warriors championship parade was the last time we will see Adidas produce official NBA merchandise. Next season, Nike takes over the NBA as the league’s official outfitter and I couldn’t be happier. (Although I am saddened by the manufacturer’s logo now appearing on the jersey and sleeves next season.)
Adidas took over as the NBA’s official outfitter in 2006, taking over Reebok. In that time, Adidas made some significant changes to the uniform, sideline wear and fabric designs for the league. Overall, the Adidas experiment in the NBA was a failure. Aside from lighter fabric for uniforms, the company did not really provide any great memorable, lasting impressions on the league.
The first change Adidas made was the Revolution 30. This was a template for all team jerseys in which the stitching and mesh fabrics of the jersey were all the same for every team. This meant that teams that featured a shinier material were forced to go to a dull flat color. You can tell difference between Derrick Rose’s rookie year jersey (under Reebok) and what Adidas put out.
This is a huge deal. Majestic and Nike have had exclusive rights to the MLB uniform. But according to the Sports Business Journal, that ends in 2020 when Under Armour takes over. All uniforms will be made by UA and we could expect some changes to some uniforms. Additionally, Fanatics will also be the merchandise retail seller. They already have a deal in place with MLB Shop but I guess this gives them more autonomy in that case and more influence.
Majestic has had the rights to MLB since 2005 and for the most part, they have done pretty well. But Majestic only focuses on MLB as a major business partner and this will hurt their influence in the rest of the sports world. Even though Majestic introduced us to the Flex Base material, they haven’t done anything huge or revolutionary in that time. They didn’t need to but because of that, it might mean the MLB was more willing to try another provider for a chance of something creative or new.
This is going to be a big change but most teams are unlikely to follow suit with a complete identity overhaul. Some teams that have not been around that long, like the Diamondbacks and their uniform change, might decide to give UA a chance. UA has already made its mark in the college scene and notable players like Buster Posey and Clayton Kershaw wear the brand. It’s a shift that we expected and now we have an idea when the full overhaul is coming.
New Era revealed the sideline caps for this upcoming NFL season. The overall design scheme is simple. It’s the main logo along with a larger logo in the background blending into the crown the cap. From a distance, it is hardly noticeable and looks very similar to the caps the players and coaches had been wearing since Nike took over in 2012.
However, if you look at the caps that the teams will be wearing, it will show you what throwbacks you should expect from several teams this year.
There are some old throwbacks that were expected to be worn this year.
Watching this clip, I noticed that Khris Davis is wearing some interesting socks. They don’t match any of the socks the team has worn in the recent past.
It looks like socks are all green with a stripe design at the calf, with the team logo around the ankle. I tried to get a decent screen shot of it.
Stephen Curry is a sponsor for Brita. I didn’t know that until I saw this tweet from a colleague of mine. That’s good for Curry as he’s getting his fame and exposure out there.
But from these screenshots, I noticed one thing that stood out to me. Look at the jersey he’s wearing. And now look at this old template design from Nike. It looks very similar.
I thought the old authentic MLB jerseys were on sale just because of the new logo. Apparently there is another change.
Check out this photo. Notice anything different? This new “FlexBase” authentic jersey has a side panel. And for those teams with pinstripes, you will get nothing and like it.
I get it. New technology and fabrics and all that jazz. But this looks pretty pathetic. Some teams with pinstripes will suffer from this new design. What a shame for teams like the Rockies, Phillies, Yankees, Mets, White Sox and Cubs.
Nike manufactures a lot of different teams’ uniforms in the college game. When Nike received the rights to manufacture the uniforms for the NFL, they took the template they had established in the college game to the NFL. We saw sweatboxes, flywire and more matte colors.
So with the Nike college jerseys using a new template, we might see the same template in the NFL next season. In fact, we have already seen it on the field. The name of the template is called “Mach Speed” and it is the newest design from Nike following their Elite 51 design, which can be seen around the NFL.
What makes this design unique is the stitching is much different. The panels are like flaps of a jacket that “zip” up the middle. Additionally, the flywire is gone and the collar design is much different. This is what it looks like.
Since 2006, Adidas has been the official outfitter of the NBA. And on Monday, it was announced that the NBA would not renew their contract with them after the 2016-17 season. I have not been a fan of many things Adidas has done in terms of aesthetics, design and common decency.
And during their time with the NBA, they have made more than their fair share of terrible outfits for NBA teams. Some of these designs had to have come from the NBA but still, it’s Adidas with the creative control on these outfits. And with that, I give you their 10 biggest blunders during their partnership with the NBA (and there’s two more years to come).
10- All-Star Game uniforms
I liked it when the All-Star Game uniforms were simple. Or even the years when the players would just wear their own team uniforms. But Adidas decided to get crazy and give us the following monstrosities.
I have complained about Adidas many times and with this news, I am relieved that one of my biggest gripes about them is over. I never liked their partnership with the NBA. They turned so many good-looking uniforms into boring cookie-cutter designs. They were trying to be innovative but realistically, they just failed on so many levels of aesthetics.
They gave us sleeves and big logos and a whole boatload of ugly alternates. But with this coming to an end soon, I can celebrate the finality of one of the worst branding partnerships I can think of in recent memory.
From the official statement from Adidas:
But at the end of the day... 
