• by Teresa Buyikian , April 7, 2025

The NFL has traded in the purveyor of its footlongs to have it “Mike’s Way” instead, with  Jersey Mike’s named the league’s official sub sandwich sponsor. The chain replaces Subway, which had been the league’s sub sandwich sponsor since 2020.

The terms of the agreement give Jersey Mike’s the “exclusive marketing rights and designations that connect the sub sandwich company with the NFL and football fans in North America,” per the announcement. 

Under the agreement, Jersey Mike’s will participate in the NFL’s key initiatives, including “NFL Flag programming across the U.S., as we continue to drive growth of the sport from the grassroots to the elite levels,” said the league's senior vice president sponsorship, Tracie Rodburg, in the announcement.

Other duties include: “taking center stage” at the NFL Draft Experience; custom experiential activations as presenting sponsor of Super Bowl Experience;  and serving as presenting sponsor of the Don Shula High School Coach of the Year Award, and  the Pro Bowl Games Fan Vote.

“Jersey Mike’s shares the league’s commitment of giving back to local communities, and to fans and customers alike,” added Rodburg.

According to the Sports Business Journal, the Jersey Mike’s deal includes all QSR rights to the NFL, minus the pizza category, which has been sponsored by Little Caesars since 2022. Jersey Mike’s 3,050-plus location sandwich chain “is planning a handful of team sponsorships in the offseason to support its new national sponsorship rights.”

The NFL is one of several investments Jersey Mike’s is making in sports marketing, as it now has “more than 40 NCAA schools and a four-year-old entitlement at the former Rutgers Athletics Center,” per the SBJ. The QSR is also the official sub sandwich of the National Hockey League.