Kansas State Wildcats working to land sponsorship deal for football jersey patch
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- K-State is negotiating jersey patch sponsorship for its football uniforms this season.
- NCAA will allow up to two patches on jerseys starting Aug. 1.
- K-State is consulting Learfield, Nike and the Big 12 while vetting potential sponsors.
Kansas State is hoping to make one noticeable change to the traditional purple-and-silver football uniforms that the Wildcats wear with pride on fall weekends.
The potential alteration: sponsorship patches on every jersey.
“If we find the right company and the right agreement,” K-State athletics director Gene Taylor said in an exclusive interview, “we will absolutely put it in place. I wouldn’t mind seeing it this season, to be honest.”
Jersey patches have become commonplace in many professional sports. Fans see them all the time during MLB games and NBA contests. In soccer, every kit is a billboard.
College uniforms haven’t been used as advertising space in the past, but things will change on August 1. On that date, the NCAA will begin allowing teams to place up to two patches of no more than 4 square inches on uniforms during regular-season games.
Rules for wearing jersey patches in the NCAA Tournament, College World Series and College Football Playoff are expected to follow.
Schools are in favor of the new policy, because it will allow them to sign lucrative sponsorship deals that will generate more money for athletic departments at a time when seemingly everyone is searching for extra sources of revenue.
K-State wants in.
“We are talking to companies about jersey patches,” Taylor said. “We are looking at options across the department. Do we do one for football? Do we do a patch for women’s sports? We’re working with Learfield and exploring all our options.”
The Wildcats know what type of company they would like to partner with on a jersey patch.
“We’ve talked to Nike, and we’ve talked to the Big 12 about it,” Taylor said. “They have requirements, and the CFP also has requirements. Let’s say, for instance, we have a patch with a company that is a top competitive sponsor of the CFP. If we get into the CFP, we would have to take that patch off. So we’re looking for a company that wouldn’t compete with any potential CFP sponsors or NCAA sponsors, because then we can sell it for more.”
A jersey patch deal could apply to all sports across the athletic department, or just to individual sports like basketball and football.
It is unclear how much extra revenue a jersey patch partnership might be worth to K-State.
But some deals have been extremely lucrative in the pro ranks. The New York Yankees reportedly bring in $25 million per year from their jersey patch agreement with Starr Insurance. In the NBA, the Golden State Warriors reportedly bring in $20 million annually from their jersey patch deal with Rakuten.
A handful of athletic departments have already announced sponsorship deals for the upcoming season. Arkansas will team up with Tyson Foods. Memphis will partner with FedEx. Wisconsin struck a deal with UW Health.
The value of two deals have already been reported. New Mexico State agreed to a three-year deal with Inn Of The Mountain Gods for a three-year contract worth about $1 million. Wyoming is teaming up with Tallgrass on a five-year arrangement worth $4.5 million.
K-State has explored sponsorship agreements in the past.
The Wildcats have partnered with WTC Fiber as a field sponsor for baseball games at Tointon Family Stadium. They have also explored selling the naming rights to Bramlage Coliseum, but Taylor said nothing is imminent on that front.
“It is kind of on pause right now,” Taylor said. “We are still waiting to see whether we find somebody interested. We will continue to have those conversations, but we haven’t had any serious conversations about Bramlage in a while.”
Instead, he says the Wildcats have “shifted our focus” to jersey patches as well as court/field sponsorships for basketball/football.
K-State could have a new sponsorship partner, and game-day look, next season.