Lululemon teams up with NFL to release apparel

Lululemon is teaming up with the NFL to launch an apparel collection for all 32 NFL teams. This will be the first time the retailer has offered officially licensed products for the NFL or any of its franchises.

The collection, scheduled to launch Tuesday, will include men’s and women’s apparel and accessories bearing NFL team brands, including some of Lululemon’s most popular products such as the men’s Steady State franchise and women’s styles from Define, Scuba and Align.

Lululemon shares rose 5% in pre-market trading Monday.

Lululemon, long known for its roots in yoga apparel, has made a notable push into sports and performance in recent years. The retailer partnered with the NHL last year to release team-branded items and has grown its list of sports-related ambassadors to include PGA golfers Min Woo Lee and Max Homa, ATP tennis player Frances Tiafoe, NFL player DK Metcalf and NHL player Connor Bedard. Earlier this year, the retailer had perhaps its biggest success yet, appointing Formula 1 champion Lewis Hamilton as an ambassador.

The retailer sees an opportunity in sports where it can offer “the best product for those fans in the premium space to be able to celebrate their teams,” said Celeste Burgoyne, head of Americas and global guest innovation at Lululemon.

“It’s really about enabling our existing guests to now wear Lululemon in arenas and stadiums, but it’s also about bringing in a new guest and really expanding and connecting our worlds in order to grow our guest base,” she said.

Lululemon has struggled in recent quarters as the company has been hit hard by the effects of tariffs and other shifting consumer trends. But CEO Calvin McDonald, speaking on CNBC last month, said he sees an opportunity for innovation within the company’s key categories and elements.

For the NFL, partnering with Lululemon on a new collection is another opportunity to expand its reach into team gear, according to NFL CRO Renie Anderson.

“We want to make sure we create a variety for all fans, from casual to more classic styles,” Anderson said. “It’s all part of the system of passion and love for the sport and your club, and being able to express yourself in that way, whether that’s in fun ways with foam fingers or hats, or in a cool, casual and fashionable way.”

The new items will be available on the league’s e-commerce website and at the team’s retail locations as well as through Fanatics, which has a long-standing partnership with the NFL and holds the league’s consumer product licensing rights to fan gear.

Historically, the sports industry has often overserved fans in some casual product categories such as t-shirts and hoodies, but there is now “a real demand and appetite for truly premium products,” said Andrew Low Ah Kee, CEO of Fanatics Commerce.

“The jersey is truly the uniform of the sport,” Low Ah Kee said. “So when we think about a consumer’s wardrobe, we think there’s a role for T-shirts, but we think there’s a role for a lot of other clothing as well.”