Caitlin Clark recently announced her intention to sign with Nike over the likes of Adidas, Puma, and Under Armour, where she will have her own signature shoe. And on Tuesday, details emerged about just how much compensation she will receive from the endorsement deal.
According to the Wall Street Journal, Clark has agreed to an eight-year deal with Nike and will receive $28 million along with her signature shoe.
The Wall Street Journal also detailed that Nike’s offer was far higher than the likes of Adidas, Under Armour, and Puma. The highest of the bunch came from Under Armour, which was reportedly a four-year $16 million deal that also included a signature shoe pitched alongside Stephen Curry’s brand.
Interestingly, some of the deals from the companies she didn’t sign with were reportedly making offers that were contingent on her staying at Iowa. This seemingly means that they believed she had more value as a college athlete than she would in the WNBA with the Indiana Fever.
Regardless, she is now a Nike athlete who is being compensated in a historic way as a female. This is the highest amount that any female athlete has ever signed with the company, which obviously speaks to how much influence she now has in sports as a whole.
Only time will tell whether this deal will be a profitable venture for Nike. But given how much Clark helped influence women’s college basketball ratings this past season, chances are the popular shoe brand will get their investment back when it comes to Clark.
About Reice Shipley
Reice Shipley is a staff writer for Comeback Media that graduated from Ithaca College with a degree in Sports Media. He previously worked at Barrett Sports Media and is a fan of all things Syracuse sports.