Zachary Neel

College Sports Wire

July 8, 2026

The floodgates are starting to open for sponsorships in college sports.

After rules were passed earlier this year for teams and universities to partner with brands to put jersey patches on the athletes' uniforms, we've seen a number of entertaining and lucrative deals made. But on Wednesday, the Kansas Jayhawks may have broken the mold.

The University of Kansas is reportedly partnering with Ripple, a digital finance company, to place the XRP cryptocurrency logo on all players' uniforms. The deal is for five years, and is expected to be among the most lucrative deals signed by a university yet under the new rules.

“We felt better about something that would encompass all of our programs, and then something that would transcend just a jersey patch,” Kansas AD Travis Goff told Sports Business Journal. “It’s one thing to put a logo on jerseys. It’s a whole other opportunity to bring to life the story of what that business, that company, that entity represents and what they do in the marketplace.”

The CEO of Ripple, Brad Garlinghouse, is a KU alum and served as a student body president during his time in Lawrence.

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“We’re at a stage where you have a pioneering industry in crypto and blockchain meeting a pioneering time and place around collegiate athletic programs,” Garlinghouse told SBJ. “That is an opportunity to jointly innovate and to jointly try new things.”

The partnership is expected to go beyond just jersey patches, as the XRP logo will be featured on signage, digital properties, and branding across Kansas athletics venues.

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