Philadelphia, PA, September 10, 2024 — The National Lacrosse League (NLL) today announced a comprehensive and transformational long-term partnership with Manchester, England-based Castore making the global performance apparel giant the exclusive on-floor performance apparel and uniform partner of the NLL for all training, practice, pre-game, and in-game use starting with the upcoming 2024-25 season slated to begin in late November.
The new, trans-Atlantic partnership officially begins with this Sunday’s 2024 NLL Draft presented by Castore, a platform the performance apparel leader will leverage to introduce new products and styles for the NLL starting with the next-generation on-floor uniform scheduled to debut in advance of the NLL’s 2025-26 season.
The Castore partnership marks the NLL’s first official uniform-centric commercial rights agreement since Reebok held the on-floor exclusivity for eight years from 2006-2013. For Castore’s founding brothers, Thomas and Philip Beahon, outfitting the NLL achieves a major goal for the company they launched in Liverpool, England, in 2015: Castore’s first league-wide performance apparel and uniform agreement with a professional sports league in North America. The athletic brand’s initial successes in the U.S. included apparel partnerships with USA Rugby and Hendrick Motorsports.
“When forging a partnership, it is imperative it is rooted in authenticity and shared goals and values,” said NLL Commissioner Brett Frood. “It is difficult to hyperbolize the alignment of the NLL and Castore’s ethos and challenger mentality. Tom and Phil have been relentless in pushing boundaries, amplifying teams and athletes, and creating premium products. Together, we are committed to elevating our respective brands to new heights and utilizing this partnership as a laboratory of innovation and disruption.”
The NLL partnership continues Castore’s international expansion into new markets, regions, and sports. Castore’s meteoric ascent as a dominant performance apparel brand powering elite teams worldwide including Formula 1’s two leading race teams, Oracle Red Bull Racing and McLaren Racing, Everton of the English Premier League, last year’s undefeated Bundesliga champion Bayer Leverkusen, and the England and Wales Cricket Board national men’s and women’s teams.
“We’re delighted to be working with the NLL on a landmark partnership that marks a significant milestone in our growth into the US market,” said Castore co-founder and co-chief executive officer Tom Beahon. “We’re extremely proud to be supplying our high-performance sportswear league-wide and are excited about the opportunities this collaboration represents, for even more teams and individual athletes globally to experience the premium quality and performance of Castore.”
To support all NLL teams and its growing North American sports partner portfolio, Castore plans on expanding its distribution capabilities and retail operations with facilities and storefronts in both the United States and Canada. Building on the success of its retail presence in the UK, Castore opened its first retail store in Europe earlier this month in Enschede, Netherlands.
The landmark partnership agreement was spearheaded internally by NLL and Castore executives and approved unanimously by the NLL’s Board of Governors.