Partnership Supports Student-Athlete Performance, Sustainable Facility Solutions and Lasting Community Impact
IRVING, Texas, Oct. 20, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — The American Conference and Ecore Athletic today announced a partnership naming Ecore Athletic the Preferred Athletic Flooring Provider of the American Conference.
Ecore Athletic is a leader in high-performance athletic rubber flooring, engineering surfaces for courts, tracks, strength and conditioning areas, fitness studios, locker rooms and recovery spaces.
“Ecore Athletic shares our commitment to investing in student-athletes, our member institutions and the communities where we compete,” said American Commissioner Tim Pernetti. “This partnership elevates every space where our student-athletes train, compete and recover, and it leaves a lasting mark in Tampa long after the final buzzer of our basketball championships. It is another example of American RISE Ventures building innovative partnerships that deliver true value in unique ways.”
As part of the agreement, Ecore Athletic will receive the designation of Preferred Athletic Flooring Provider of the American Conference. Ecore Athletic will also donate a court to Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Tampa Bay during the 2027 American Conference Men’s and Women’s Basketball Championships, played March 9-14, 2027, at the Yuengling Center and hosted by the University of South Florida. The court will remain in the Tampa community after the championships.
“Partnering with the American Conference is a natural extension of Ecore’s mission to elevate athletic spaces with high-performance flooring that supports the evolving needs of sports facilities,” said David Sides, vice president of strategic partnerships at Ecore. “Student-athletes across the Conference deserve surfaces built for performance and built to last, and we’re proud to engineer flooring solutions for the full athletic facility, from weight rooms and training areas to locker rooms and recovery spaces.”
BUILT FOR PERFORMANCE
Court sports place unique demands on the floor, from repeated jumping and landing to quick changes in direction. Ecore Athletic court surfaces deliver shock absorption, responsiveness and reliable ball rebound.
Ecore’s patented itsTRU® technology fusion bonds a performance rubber backing to a range of surface materials, delivering the specific combination of performance, durability, acoustics and aesthetics each space requires. Its court surfaces are engineered around shock absorption, energy restitution, traction and ball rebound.
Through the partnership, American Conference member institutions will gain access to Ecore Athletic flooring across the full athletic facility, along with Ecore’s expertise when evaluating flooring needs for renovations, facility upgrades and new construction.
Student-athletes train, recover and prepare throughout the building, and each space places different demands on the floor. A basketball court calls for ball response, traction, shock absorption and energy restitution. A strength-training surface must withstand repeated heavy impacts. Fitness, wellness and recovery spaces require surfaces engineered for their specific use.
SUSTAINABILITY BUILT INTO EVERY SURFACE
Circularity is core to Ecore’s business model, with the company reclaiming end-of-life rubber and transforming it into high-performance products.
Ecore reclaims approximately 474 million pounds of waste rubber each year, including used commercial tires, and turns it into high-performance flooring.
Ecore’s TRUcircularity™ Takeback Program reclaims eligible rubber flooring, turf and track systems at the end of their useful life. The material is cleaned, ground and reprocessed into new surfaces and components.
For American Conference member institutions, sustainability can be considered across the full life of an athletic floor, from the materials used in a new surface to what happens when that surface is replaced.
IMPACT BEYOND THE GAME
The partnership will also extend beyond American Conference campuses and competition venues.
During the 2027 American Conference Men’s and Women’s Basketball Championships, Ecore Athletic will donate a multi-purpose court to Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Tampa Bay.
“Sports have always been about more than the game at Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Tampa Bay. They teach teamwork, build confidence, develop character, and create opportunities for young people to discover what they’re capable of achieving,” said Dr. Diana Santangelo, Sr. Vice President of Programs at Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Tampa Bay. “Thanks to Ecore Athletic and the American Conference, our Club members will have access to a high-quality space where they can compete, grow, and dream bigger. This investment goes far beyond a basketball court. It’s an investment in the potential of every young person who steps onto it.”
The court will remain in the Tampa community after the championships, giving local young people a place to play on the same kind of performance surface engineered for college athletes.
“This partnership is a great example of how we can leverage the collective strength of the American Conference to create value for our member institutions,” said Bryan Calka, chief commercial officer of the American Conference. “Ecore brings innovative solutions and expertise that can help our institutions create high-performance environments designed to support student-athletes at every stage of their training and recovery.”
The partnership was executed through American RISE Ventures, the wholly owned commercial division of the conference created to lead revenue generation, sponsorship strategy, brand partnerships, technology and emerging business opportunities. The agreement also builds on Ecore Athletic’s growing presence in collegiate athletics following its recent partnership with the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics.
About American Conference
The American Conference is a member of the National Collegiate Athletic Association. The league was founded in 1979, reconstituted in 2013 as the American Athletic Conference, and rebranded as the “American Conference” in 2025. With the conference office in Irving, Texas, the American is comprised of the following institutions: University of Alabama at Birmingham, United States Military Academy West Point (Army, in football only), University of North Carolina at Charlotte, East Carolina University, Florida Atlantic University, University of Memphis, United States Naval Academy (Navy, in football only), University of North Texas, Rice University, University of South Florida, Temple University, University of Texas at San Antonio, Tulane University, University of Tulsa and Wichita State University (basketball and Olympic sports).
Under the leadership of Commissioner Tim Pernetti, the American sponsors 20 sports, nine for men and 11 for women; is a member of the College Football Playoff; has television partnerships with ESPN and CBS Sports; and in the spring of 2019 signed a foundational television agreement with ESPN that commenced in 2020-21 and extends through the 2033-34 academic year. For more information, please visit TheAmerican.org.
About Ecore Athletic
Ecore Athletic empowers human performance with safe, durable athletic surfaces that boast exceptional acoustic and ergonomic characteristics. From indoor and outdoor sports and recreational tracks and courts to fitness, functional training, health and wellness, and therapy/rehab spaces, Ecore Athletic surfaces offer unparalleled durability, performance and noise absorption in countless design aesthetics.
Through its patented itsTRU® technology, Ecore fusion bonds its VCR “muscle” to a variety of surface materials, helping athletes, clients and students stay safe and perform at their peak for longer.
Ecore’s commitment to circularity drives sustainable solutions designed to enhance athletic performance while promoting environmental stewardship for a greener planet free of rubber waste. Headquartered in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, Ecore International serves customers in more than 75 countries.
For more information about how Ecore is leading the world’s rubber circularity economy, visit www.ecoreintl.com. To learn more about Ecore Athletic’s complete line of sports, recreation and fitness surfacing and flooring, visit www.ecoreathletic.com.
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SOURCE American Conference
