Under Armour has surpassed Adidas to become the second biggest sportswear brand in the U.S. by sales, the Wall Street Journal reports.
The Baltimore-based company has overtaken its German rival with sales growth of 20% to $1.2 billion so far this year. Over the same time period, Adidas' sales have fallen 23% to $1.1 billion, according to the Journal.
Nike is still far ahead of both companies, with $8.9 billion in sales for the period.
Best known for its performance wear, Under Armour has grown rapidly over the last 18 years. When it was founded in 1996, it had $17,000 in revenue. This year, it's expected to bring in $3 billion.
The company has been investing in endorsement deals to compete with Nike, which has long had a monopoly over the biggest names in sports.
Under Armour recently snagged a deal with supermodel Gisele Bundchen shortly after launching its largest-ever global women's marketing campaign. And earlier this year, Under Armour scored the biggest equipment deal in college sports.
The company recently lost a bid for basketball star Kevin Durant to Nike, but Under Armour CEO Kevin Plank said he wasn't deterred by the failure.
"We're going to grow 20%-plus next year with or without the deal," Plank told Bloomberg TV's Stephanie Ruhle. "We wanted to send a message to every athletic director, to every president of every team club, to every league commissioner, that if you have a deal, there's no deal too big for us."
