Unrivaled Gears Up For Inaugural Season With More Exciting Partnerships

After months and months of planning and preparing, Unrivaled is about to take the court for their inaugural game on Friday.

Leading up to the start of the first season, the league has been partnering with many big-name brands and organizations, and in the final hours leading up to game one, they have two more partnerships to add to the family.

The new league is gearing up to launch its highly anticipated debut season on January 17, promising to redefine the women's basketball offseason with its unique approach.

The excitement around Unrivaled has been building at a steady pace since first announcing the new league. With each player added and each new partnership, the anticipation has continued to build.

The league, started by New York Liberty star Breanna Stewart and Minnesota Lynx star Napheesa Collier, is giving WNBA players an option to continue playing during the offseason in the states rather than overseas.

In 2023, Stewart explained to ESPN, "It's the ability for players to stay home. To be in a market like Miami where we can just be the buzz and create that with the best WNBA players. We can't keep fighting [the WNBA's prioritization rule]. It is a rule that takes away our choices, which should never be a thing, especially as women, but it's still a rule."

Collier added her own personal experience to the chat.

"I think it just really opened my eyes even more to the problem that we have going overseas," she said. "It's really hard to be away from family for so long, but unfortunately, it's like really the only option we have if we wanna make money in the offseason, we want to continue to grow our game, and it just leaves a huge hole marketing wise, so we just saw a lot of issues that we wanted to try to find a solution for."

Unrivaled has been busy adding new partnerships for the past few months. They've partnered with Samsung Galaxy, Sephora, TNT Sports, Under Armour, Ally Financial, Miller Lite, State Farm, Ticketmaster, and Mediapro North America. And to add to that impressive list, they just partnered with Sprite and BODYARMOR Sports Drink.

Unrivaled presented by Samsung Galaxy just announced a multiyear partnership with Sprite and BODYARMOR Sports Drink, with Sprite becoming the presenting partner of Unrivaled's 1-on-1 tournament and BODYARMOR serving as the league's official sports drink partner.

“Sprite has a longstanding connection to basketball and basketball culture. Today, we’re excited to support the next generation of women who are taking the game to new heights," said A.P. Chaney, Coca-Cola Company Senior Creative Director, Sparkling Flavors. "Our partnership with Unrivaled is a natural fit with our ‘Obey Your Thirst’ spirit, and we’re honored to stand alongside and celebrate these athletes who are evolving the sport. It’s incredibly special to be part of something that is inspiring change and driving equity and opportunity for women in basketball, sports, and beyond.”

Tom Gargiulo, BODYARMOR Sports Nutrition Chief Marketing Officer, added, "BODYARMOR is proud to join Unrivaled and support these elite athletes with superior hydration. We look forward to fueling the incredible talent participating in the league and contributing to the growth of women's basketball."

Sprite will be the presenting sponsor for the league's 1-on-1 tournament, in which athletes will compete head-to-head for a prize of $250,000.

BODYARMOR Sports Drink and BODYARMOR SportWater will be available on the benches during games and practices, as well as in locker rooms and training facilities. Logo and branding will also be featured across all hydration queues, on towels, and more.

On Tuesday, Unrivaled shared some news about watch parties hosted by Ally on their Instagram page.

"We’ve teamed up with @ally to bring Unrivaled nationwide by partnering with 6 sports bars dedicated to elevating women’s sports," the announcement reads. "Get ready because they’ll be showing EVERY Unrivaled game and hosting official watch parties on select nights throughout the season!"

Watch parties will take place in Portland, Minneapolis, Chicago, New York City, Denver, Long Beach, and Miami. (See Instagram post for exact locations.)

Fans are ready for the action to begin on the court. In the meantime, they're buying up all the great Unrivaled merchandise, and in record time.

The league recently released 100 Founding Fan Merch boxes and they completely sold out in just 7 minutes!

If you want to purchase some Unrivaled merch and rep your favorite team, they sell t-shirts, sweatshirts, hoodies, sweatpants, and sets on their website.

The much-anticipated season starts on Friday!

Unrivaled will be based in Miami for the 2025 season. Each of the six teams - Mist BC, Laces BC, Phantom BC, Lunar Owls BC, Rose BC, and Vinyl BC - will play 14 games during the regular season, followed by playoffs set for March 16 to 18, 2025.

Ahead of their first game, each team took questions from the media and shared their thoughts on the league.

Phantom player, Brittney Griner, said she's "looking forward to it."

"I felt like something was missing in my off season. I was used to playing year-round then after everything that happened, I kind of felt like there was a void because I should be playing and not really being off honestly," she explained. "So it kind of hit me a little different. I wanted to go back to working honestly year-round so I think this is just going to help me stay fresh."

Laces player, Kate Martin, is ready for the opportunity to "play against some of the best players in the world."

"Any opportunity I get or you get, you just want to make the most of it," she said. "I'm really excited for the next 10 weeks and challenge myself against some of the best players in the world."

Rose player, Angel Reese, said she's "excited to join the crew."

"I feel like I can pull from everybody on the team, if it's coming from leadership, veteran leadership, Lexie brings a lot of defense, Kah obviously, she's won a championship, she's done a lot and I've been watching these players since I was in college," she said. "And obviously, I have one year under my belt but just being able to get as much information as I can while I'm here."

Unrivaled tips off its debut season on Friday, Jan. 17. Games can be watched on TNT. For more information and game schedule, visit their website and Instagram page.