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Under Armor is out.
Aston Villa announced this morning a parting of the ways with the American-based company. The two year partnership was ended by mutual consent — which hopefully means no long term financial pain for either side.
Aston Villa can confirm that the club and its technical partner, Under Armour, have mutually decided to end their relationship.
— Aston Villa FC (@AVFCOfficial) April 6, 2018
The club would like to thank Under Armour for their support over the past two years and would like to wish them all the best for the future.#AVFC pic.twitter.com/7wXGGcepbX
I’ll admit that I have liked the merchandise and kits the past two years. But the deal makes some sense — UA has had a rough time recently with a data breach through My Fitness Pal that impacted 150 million people and overall the stock price has fallen by about 70% since the highs in Fall 2015... so that is not great.
Aston Villa are continuing to adjust to the financial world in the Championship and hopefully have a business plan in place to make this work out for the club in the long run. I’d expect there are two sets of negotiations going on — one using Premier League level numbers and one in the current league. The club’s argument to a potential partner is a strong one with the massive fan base, strong team, and chance at promotion (this year and next, if the playoffs don’t work out in Villa’s favor).
Looking ahead — some guesses/hopes/fears for next kits are already flying around twitter. Adidas, Umbro, and Nike are getting some love. Macron is getting trashed. And many are speculating a connection to a Chinese manufacturer is a likely option.
In the end, Tony Xia & co will make the decision that makes the most financial sense for him and the club. All I want is a blue and black away kit.