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    Categories>Career & Business>Under Armour: The Making of an Empire | Kevin Plank's Story

    Under Armour: The Making of an Empire | Kevin Plank's Story

    20 min
    |
    |
    3. Juni 2026
    Career & BusinessEntrepreneurshipLeadership & Corp Culture

    Discover how Kevin Plank founded Under Armour. Learn how a University of Maryland football player's search for a moisture-wicking shirt built a sports apparel empire.

    Under Armour: The Making of an Empire | Kevin Plank's Story

    Bestes Zitat aus Under Armour: The Making of an Empire | Kevin Plank's Story

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    The making of the under armour brand

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    Eliplay
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    Wissensquellen
    History - Under Armour
    link
    https://about.underarmour.com/en/our-company/history.html
    Tight Skivvies | TIME
    link
    https://time.com/archive/6668005/tight-skivvies/
    Under Armour CEO Kevin Plank Reveals 2025 Strategy at Investor Meeting in New York City
    link
    https://wwd.com/business-news/business-features/under-armour-ceo-kevin-plank-interview-2025-strategy-1236763834/
    Under Armour, Inc.
    link
    https://www.sec.gov/files/litigation/admin/2021/33-10940.pdf
    Under Armour is paying $434M to settle allegations that it duped investors - The Banner
    link
    https://www.thebanner.com/economy/under-armour-investor-payment-DTRZJD7GFFB65EFH4YFZGFNVQU/

    Häufig gestellte Fragen

    The story of Under Armour began in 1995 while Kevin Plank was a senior running back at the University of Maryland. Frustrated by heavy, sweat-soaked cotton t-shirts that chafed and added weight during the August heat, Plank became obsessed with finding a better solution. He wanted to create a featherweight, moisture-wicking shirt that stayed light and dry, similar to the compression shorts he wore under his football pants.

    Kevin Plank aimed to solve the problem of traditional cotton shirts becoming heavy, wet sponges during intense athletic activity. In the mid-nineties, athletes dealt with shirts that bunched under pads and caused chafing, which was even linked to heat exhaustion among his teammates. Plank sought to develop athletic performance gear that offered a skintight fit while effectively wicking moisture away from the skin to improve comfort and speed.

    The University of Maryland serves as the birthplace of the Under Armour empire. It was during his time as a college football player there that Kevin Plank identified a gap in the sports apparel market. After noticing that no sporting goods stores or catalogs offered the specific type of performance gear he needed, he used his experience on the field to spark the innovation that would eventually lead to a global brand.

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    "Reading used to feel like a chore. Now it’s just part of my lifestyle."

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    "Feels effortless compared to reading. I’ve finished 6 books this month already."

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    Kernaussagen

    1

    The Problem with a Sweat-Soaked T-Shirt

    2

    From a Grandmother’s Basement to the Big Leagues

    3:15
    3:38
    3

    Protecting the House and Defining the Will

    5:55
    4

    The Pressure of the Streak and the Pull-Forward Scheme

    8:25
    9:29
    5

    The Era of Innovation and Global Partnerships

    10:41
    11:06
    12:12
    6

    The Reset and the Return to Underdog Roots

    13:03
    13:28
    7

    Building Your Own "Protect this House" Mentality

    15:26
    8

    The Future of Performance and Community

    9

    Final Reflections on the Under Armour Journey

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