By Andy Marston, Sports Pundit
U.S. Polo Assn. has officially been named one of the Top 20 sports IP owners globally, according to Two Circles’ 2025 Sports Revenue League.
The brand generated a record $2.5B in global retail sales in 2024, with the majority coming from licensing and direct-to-consumer channels.
U.S. Polo Assn. is expanding rapidly in key global markets including India (where it’s the fastest growing menswear brand), as well as upcoming launches in Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Poland, and Thailand.
Its 135th anniversary campaign will feature global in-store activations, influencer collabs, and sport-linked fashion drops.
Broadcast deals with ESPN in the U.S. and Star Sports in India have helped elevate the sport itself, with events like the U.S. Open Polo Championship positioned alongside premium rights such as The Masters and IPL.
Why It Matters:
This is a textbook example of a rightsholder building brand equity through product, not just performance. In a media-dominated industry, U.S. Polo Assn. has carved out a lucrative niche by making its sport-inspired fashion the hero and in doing so has earned a place at the top table of sports business, without playing by its traditional rules.
It also signals a broader shift. As rights fragmentation grows and media rights plateaus, IP owners in sports like tennis, golf, or even motorsport may explore more retail-led strategies. Polo may be an outlier, but it’s showing what happens when sport, style, and storytelling are stitched together properly (pun intended).
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