Nike’s Big Reveal for Caitlin Clark Backfires as Fans Slam Disappointing Logo

Nike knows when the spotlight’s burning hot, and right now the W is on fire. So it makes perfect sense that Monday, the swoosh dropped a major announcement: Caitlin Clark is officially getting her own signature line. This move puts her in elite company as she just joined New York Liberty guard Sabrina Ionescu, who just launched her third shoe in July, and Las Vegas Aces’ A’ja Wilson, whose A’Ones hit shelves in May.

“Nike’s signature roster features all-time greats, and I am incredibly proud to join some of the best athletes in the world,” Clark said in the release. “I’m excited to share a first look at what we’ve started to create together.” Just like that, she shared what’s been brewing ever since Nike signed Clark to that monster eight-year, $28 million endorsement deal last year. Her original NIL deal ran its course after the 2023-24 college season.

So now, Caitlin Clark is Nike’s newest signature athlete, and yes, the shoes and gear are coming. The debut came with her personal stamp too, which is a logo made of two interlocking Cs. Nike says that it’s a nod to her connection with fans, with the smaller C meant to show “how Caitlin’s game was built from the inside out – a product of her passion for the sport, relentless drive and constant pursuit of perfection.

Here’s Clark’s take, “To me, this is more than just a logo, it’s a dream come true,” she said. “People always talk about leaving your mark on the game, and this is another way I can do that.” However, the internet is not exactly in love with it. Whatever emotional pull Nike was aiming for seems to have rimmed out. Here’s what people have been saying-

Caitlin Clark’s Double C Flop

Nike tried to sell this new mark as “a combination of interlocking Cs as extraordinary as the athlete they represent.” Problem is, the internet wasn’t buying it, they saw anything but two interlocked Cs-

• “A crappy re-do of Mastercard or a weird eyeball! You can hardly make out the 2 Cs…”
• “Looks like COC to me. The c’s need to be a different color.”
• “I’ve stared at it too long so now I only see an eyeball.”
• “I thought it was the Gucci logo at first.”

But the jokes weren’t just about design, they were about the wait. Fans have been fed a three-year build-up since Clark’s first Nike NIL deal in 2022. This was supposed to be the coronation as she chose Nike over heavy-hitters like Under Armour ($16 million over four years), Adidas ($6 million over four years), and even had Puma sniffing around before walking when they heard bidding would start at $3 million a year, according to WSJ and The Athletic.

Instead, she signed an eight-year, $28 million extension, the richest sponsorship ever for a women’s basketball player. And for that,  fans rightfully felt that the logo needed to land harder. One summed it up perfectly: “All this time and this is what they came up with.”

To be fair though, logos rarely arrive to universal applause. Remember when A’ja Wilson’s A’One logo dropped? Nike described it as a glittery “diamond in the rough” tribute with bold, feminine flair. Fans weren’t exactly swooning then either. But guess what, the A’One collection sold out in hours, and the A’Two is already being teased.

Still, comparisons flew. “Definitely worse than A’ja and Angel. Sad!” one person wrote, invoking Angel Reese, who’s got her own thing going. Reebok, under Shaquille O’Neal as president and Allen Iverson as VP, is set to drop her Angel Reese 1 “Charm City” this October. Apart from these athletes, there’s also Breanna Stewart who has quietly built her own Puma line, several models deep.

Bottom line here is that Nike’s Caitlin Clark logo may be catching early elbows, but if history holds, it won’t matter. June’s Kobe Bryant release in Fever colors already proved the market: anything tied to Clark sells. Someone even cut straight to it in the comments: “Take all my money.” Share with us, your move – are you lining up for the drop, or sitting this one out?