The Hardest Working Jockstrap in Sport!

Under Armour (UA) has a new ad campaign.

Anyone need a bra?

When UA’s latest television commercial flashed up on the screen the other night, I yelled at the TV; “Where the fuck is the jockstrap ad you fucking cowards!” Then I text messaged turnipHed in anger.

For a long time UA was a brand I was keen on wearing and supporting but in the last few years I’ve not only abandoned the brand; I’ve actively encouraged guys to not participate in the “dumbing down” of the brand for mass appeal.

As a 2011 Macleans.ca article observed, “most people who buy Under Armour gear, wear it on the field and in the gym, whereas Nike and Adidas clothing is just as likely to be donned for a trip to the mall or backyard barbecue.”

UA gear has always appealed to guys who are looking for quality gear that fits the sport they enjoy. UA was the right gear for the right job by the right company with the right approach.

I’ve always seen UA as a bold “technical” brand. It was founded by Kevin Plank, an athletic guy, who saw the comfort and versatility of compression fabrics and designed garments to meet the needs of athletes.

Running Tights for Men Available from Under Armour He wasn’t afraid to tell men they deserved comfort and they shouldn’t be ashamed of wearing tight gear that did the job in the gym and on the field.

For a time during the comparatively conservative 1990′s^» 01 it was a bold brand trying something very new. Tight gear on men. It wasn’t fashion. It wasn’t stylish. It was functional. Men loved it.

Lately though, in their quest to one-up NIKE and become a pervasive global brand UA has totally lost sight of who starting wearing their gear and why we wear it.

Under Armour is caving into market-gurus and conservative commercial trends in order to increase revenues and appeal to investors.

Even though it started in 1996 most guys didn’t even know the UA brand existed until 1999.

That’s when UA gear started to appear in popular media like the movie “Any Given Sunday” with Jamie Foxx.

Guess what garment appeared? Yes you guessed it, the jockstrap.

After the T-shirt, it was the jockstrap and other male underwear staples like compression shorts and running tights that gave UA is initial market share and audience.

If you were like me, you heard early about UA from another guy who had put on one of their jockstraps or a pair of running tights and loved the feel of it.

Tight but comfortable, the gear breathes well and supports a guy’s muscles as well as his cock during tough demanding sport activities and workouts.

As the UA brand grew and mass marketing increased, though you almost never saw ads for their jockstrap or any of their tight compression gear for men in print never mind on TV. You even had to go searching their site for the jockstrap because it rarely appeared on the sites marquee.

So here’s my question. Why hasn’t there ever been a televised commercial for the UA jockstrap?

I actually know why. Its called a dick. Pun intended.

Someone thought it was a good idea to put a bra commercial on television; so why not the jockstrap?^» 02

The jockstrap isn’t on TV for the same reason you rarely see condom commercials on TV or male body grooming tools like Philips BodyGroom. Compression Shorts available from Under Armour

UA doesn’t have the balls to put a guy’s balls on TV and tell men (and women, who buy men their gear) that the UA brand is the best brand for male athletic support.

Some dickhead probably told them that putting a guy’s crotch on TV and bouncing it around advertising a jockstrap would be “obscene”.

Yet putting a woman’s tits up on the screen and bouncing those around for 90 seconds is just fine.

UA has missed their chance to prove they are the bold company I imagined them to be back in the late 90′s when I saw their gear and started to see men wearing tight comfortable gear again on the field and in the gym.

They’ve taken the jockstrap and relegated it to the “shelf of shame” along with most other major brands who are too cowardly to advertise it even though it’s a staple in their garment line.

But go ahead and buy a bra.

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UrbanGuyTO

UrbanGuyTO is your average suburban gay guy trying to make his way in the urban landscape.

Invited by turnipHed to guest blog about his daily interactions on TURNIPSTYLE.COM because we share an interest in men’s fashion, which includes; underwear, swimwear, leather, rubber, neoprene, spandex and being nude.

UrbanGuyTO is the Pride48 2012 Best Package, title holder.

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