Dallas Wings center Li Yueru joined the Under Armour athlete list this season. But she’s had to consistently cover the logo of her sneakers to avoid a fine and possible suspension.
That’s because in the WNBA, players must only wear apparel from brands with league partnerships—and Under Armour did not renew its brand partnership with the WNBA this year, a source tells Front Office Sports.
According to the latest CBA, players must wear apparel supplied by their team or league. That means players are restricted to Nike-branded apparel due to its comprehensive partnership with the NBA, WNBA, and G League that runs until 2037.
Players may only wear other sneaker brands in games, practices, and press conferences if the brand is an “Authorized Footwear Supplier” and the player secures a “Qualifying Shoe Deal” with the brand.
A Qualifying Shoe Deal requires at least a $5,000 annual payment to the players. It’s unclear how much each brand must pay the WNBA to become an Authorized Footwear Supplier.
“At this time, UA, Curry Brand are not Authorized WNBA Footwear Providers so, as per the CBA, players who have endorsement agreements with UA are required to cover the logos,” a league source told FOS.
Despite also having a partnership with Nike, the NBA, which owns 42% of the WNBA, does not require other brands to have individual footwear deals in order for their players to wear their sneakers.
To comply with the WNBA’s restrictive apparel rules, some Under Armour athletes have either covered the brand’s logos on their shoes or worn shoes that were manufactured without the logo.
Li has been seen wearing Curry 13 shoes with tape over the Curry Brand logo. (Under Armour and Steph Curry parted ways in November, but the brand still released the Curry 13 in February.)
Toronto Tempo guard Marina Mabrey, the brand’s most prominent WNBA player since Kelsey Plum left Under Armour earlier this year, has appeared in Curry Brand shoes that do not include the company’s logo.
Connecticut Sun forward Diamond Miller, however, does not appear to have covered the Under Armour logo on the Spawn 5 LE shoes she normally wears. Golden State Valkyries forward Laeticia Amihere has also played games with the Curry Brand logo visible.
Under Armour is not the first brand to manufacture logo-less shoes for its WNBA players to adhere to the league’s guidelines.
Holo has produced shoes without logos for Chicago Sky guard Jacy Sheldon. Moolah Kicks had to do the same for Minnesota Lynx guard Courtney Williams last year after she was fined multiple times by the WNBA. Williams even faced “possible suspensions” if she did not switch to an approved brand or cover the logos, according to The New York Times.
Williams, a two-time All-Star, has worn Nike shoes this season.
It’s unclear whether any of Under Armour’s athletes have received penalties from the league so far this season. Aside from Li, Mabrey, and Miller, Under Armour also endorses Amihere and Portland Fire guard Nika Mühl, who is out for the season.
The teams of the active players did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
