Friday morning, South Carolina announced a new apparel deal with Nike that will go into effect on July 1, 2026. The women’s basketball program is a major part of the agreement, and the Gamecocks could soon have a brand new look.
It’s not surprising that Nike wanted to be associated with the Gamecock women’s basketball. Dawn Staley has been affiliated with Nike for nearly 30 years, since she had a signature Nike shoe in the late 1990s.
She has never been critical of Under Armour, but if you follow her on social media, you know that Staley’s heart has always been with the swoosh (although she doesn’t like their basketballs).
Former Gamecock A’ja Wilson is a Nike athlete, and they released her wildly popular A’One signature shoe this year. Ironically, in the Final Four, Nike outfitted Texas in A’Ones for the national semifinal game against South Carolina.
Fittingly, Wilson is a significant part of Nike’s plans for the Gamecocks. The entire first section of the “Additional Benefits” in the contract is dedicated to “A’ja Wilson Integration.”
As part of the agreement, South Carolina will wear Wilson’s signature shoe (expected to be the ”A’Two” in 2026) in garnet and black. The A’One was initially released in pink, but has expanded to countless other color schemes, or “colorways” in sneaker-speak.
Nike will also “explore A’ja Wilson travel and other team gear.” It sounds like Wilson’s star logo is going to feature prominently. Is Nike trying to create the female Jumpman?
Nike will also use the Gamecocks in its Wilson-related marketing. (You know Nike is looking into changing the shoes on Wilson’s statue from Under Armour to A’Ones.)
The cash alternatives if Nike does not deliver are $15 million for the apparel and $3 million for the marketing.
Nike will also provide South Carolina with new uniforms beginning with the 2026-27 season. The uniforms will be baked on the “Paris uniform chassis” that Nike designed for USA Basketball at the 2024 Paris Olympics.
Nike will provide the Gamecocks with a “full redesign” of at least four new uniforms. The contract allows four years for Nike to complete the redesign, but there’s a good chance the redesign will happen in time for the first season.
There are significant differences in the cut and template of Under Armour and Nike uniforms, and it probably isn’t possible to simply copy and paste the current design onto the Paris chassis.
The current jerseys have a narrower racerback shoulder design, and the names are below the numbers. Both are signature features of Under Armor uniforms, and Nike isn’t paying this much money to promote Under Armour’s designs. Additionally, Under Armour created the font used by Gamecock athletics, and Nike will likely be interested in a new font.
South Carolina may not get all four new designs immediately, but it will likely get at least home and away uniforms.
Additionally, Nike designers will lead the redesign of the court at Colonial Life Arena. The contract doesn’t specify whether that means it will be an entirely new court. The current court was installed in 2016, replacing a court that had been used since 2007.
There is no set life expectancy for a basketball court. However, the NBA requires teams to replace courts after 10 years of use, so it is reasonable to think the current court is nearing the end of its lifespan.
South Carolina will also have access to the Nike Sport Research Lab.
It is not clear from the contract provided to the media if the Gamecock basketball teams will have to use Nike basketballs. Programs are allowed to choose what brand of basketball they use for home games.
There is no standard brand until the postseason, when everyone uses a Wilson basketball. Throughout the Under Armour deal, South Carolina used a Wilson basketball in order to be better prepared for the postseason.
(The brand of basketball may not be noticeable to us laypeople, but players absolutely know the difference.)
