Nike Drops Antonio Brown From Sponsorship

Antonio Brown has been dropped from his sponsorship deal with Nike.

On Thursday, the sports apparel company confirmed to USA Today that the New England Patriots receiver would no longer be affiliated with Nike. “Antonio Brown is not a Nike athlete,” the Nike spokesman said in an email. The company did not elaborate on the decision to no longer sponsor Brown.

However, last week, a woman named Britney Taylor filed a sexual assault lawsuit against the player, and days later, Brown was also accused of misconduct by another woman. 

Brown discussed a lucrative deal with Nike in a YouTube sneaker video for Complex, telling the outlet: “I am getting a huge Nike deal, which is opening up leverage for a lot of other guys and a lot of up-and-coming players to get in the marketing world and making money off the field.”

No details about Brown’s Nike deal were released but a $100 shoe called “Nike Tech Trainer Antonio Brown” was announced in February. The shoe has been removed from the company’s website. Brown and his lawyer, Darren Heitner, have denied the rape allegations; they are not looking into a countersuit. 

Taylor filed the lawsuit one day after Brown officially signed a one-year contract, $15 million contract with the Patriots.