The Univ. of WI (UW) athletic department is "searching for a new" shoe and apparel deal after Reebok "declined an option to extend the current deal for two more years," according to Tom Mulhern of the WISCONSIN STATE JOURNAL, who noted UW is in the fifth and final year of the Reebok deal, which is worth about $1.5M annually in cash and equipment. UW Associate AD Vince Sweeney said the school "anticipated this, so it doesn't come as a surprise." Sweeney added that Reebok "expressed to us they would like to continue with us. They just don't want to do it under the current terms and conditions." Sweeney said that it is "unlikely UW will be able to work out a new deal to cover all the men's and women's teams," as "more likely would be a smaller deal covering three or four sports, including football and men's basketball." Mulhern wrote that any new deal would be "considerably less than the current" one, as a five-year financial plan for the athletic department released in October '99 estimated a new deal would average about $490,000 per year (WISCONSIN STATE JOURNAL, 12/8).
