A report on Wednesday confirmed the likelihood that Tennessee will leave Nike to return to Adidas. Fox Sports Knoxville shared that Adidas has aggressively negotiated with Tennessee to return to Adidas and leave Nike.
Cody McClure reported that the deal with Adidas is not done, but it seems likely that Tennessee will switch from Nike to Adidas to increase its revenue from its uniform partner.
With its Nike deal, Tennessee currently makes about $5-5.5 million per year. McClure indicated that Adidas has offered well above that mark, possibly even double what Nike is offering, to bring Tennessee back to the brand it was synonymous with in the 1990s and 2000s.
The Vols have donned the Nike swoosh since 2015, when Tennessee made the popular move away from Adidas and to Nike. The initial deal was extended in 2017 and is currently set to expire in 2026, which has opened the door for Adidas to swoop in and steal the Vols back.
This left many Tennessee fans frustrated on social media, who called back to the atrocities that Adidas committed in the final decade of the contract.
Since Tennessee moved to Nike, apparel, uniforms, and colors have been streamlined, leading to no more mismatched oranges on jerseys, pants, and helmets.
Adidas consistently struggled with this problem, and Tennessee fans did not shy away from calling them out for their failures in hopes of swaying Athletic Director Danny White away from making the move.
While some fans are upset at the possibility, others have gone as far as to say they will not buy Adidas merchandise at all if this deal is made.
Not to mention the varying shades of Tennessee orange. Whether yellow or any of a thousand shades of orange, Adidas could never be consistent with its colors.
This abomination of a jersey all but sealed the deal for Tennessee to move to Nike. The uniforms were so bad that Tennessee refused to wear them.
It should be clear to Danny White and Tennessee's administration that a move to Adidas might bring in more money on the front end from Adidas, but it could hurt the Vols in the long run. The Nike swoosh will likely be around with Tennessee fans' apparel for a long time, as they hold onto their Nike gear during a new Adidas era.