With positive reviews from players, word began to spread and orders began to increase. This deal opened the door to contracts with NC State, Arizona State, and other Division I football teams. Following that front page, Under Armour's first major sale came, when an equipment manager from Georgia Tech requested 10 shirts from Plank. People began to take notice of the brand when a front-page photo of USA Today featured Oakland Raiders quarterback Jeff George wearing an Under Armour mock turtleneck. Plank opted to use the British spelling " armour" in the company name because the toll-free vanity number was still available for that version. Major competing brands including Nike, Adidas and Reebok would soon follow in Plank's footsteps with their own moisture-wicking apparel. Plank soon perfected the design creating a new T-shirt built from microfibers that wicked moisture and kept athletes cool, dry, and light. After graduating from the University of Maryland, Plank developed his first prototype of the shirt, which he gave to his Maryland teammates and friends who had gone on to play in the NFL. This inspired him to make a T-shirt using moisture-wicking synthetic fabric. Īs a fullback at the University of Maryland, Plank got tired of having to change out of the sweat-soaked T-shirts worn under his jersey however, he noticed that his compression shorts worn during practice stayed dry. After a few moves in the city he moved to his current headquarters in Tide Point. From his grandmother's basement, Plank moved to Baltimore. His first team sale came at the end of 1996 with a $17,000 sale. He spent his time traveling along the East Coast with nothing but apparel in the trunk of his car.
Plank initially began the business from his grandmother's basement in Washington, D.C.
Under Armour was founded on September 25, 1996, by Kevin Plank, a then 24-year-old former special teams captain of the University of Maryland football team. Kevin Plank, founder of Under Armour, pictured in 2018
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