The Trail Running Shoe Sponsorship Power Rankings (September 2025 Edition)
From HOKA to Adidas TERREX to surprise upstarts, here's how brands stacked up across the sport's biggest races.
Who’s winning the shoe race in trail running?
Brands don’t sponsor athletes just for fun. They want visibility, and ultimately, sales. The formula is simple. Athletes race, athletes win, and the gear they’re wearing gets plastered across photos, videos, and finish-line highlights.
Shoes are the most visible part of the kit. They’re on display every step of the way, and for trail runners, they’re often the most important gear decision. Brands know this, which is why they fight to get their shoes on the feet of the sport’s best athletes.
For elites, those shoe deals can be significant contracts with real money, bonuses, and prestige attached. And the fastest way to earn them? Perform on the sport’s biggest stages.
So who’s been delivering in 2025? Which brands are owning the podiums at the world’s premier races?
Let’s find out.
Presenting: The Shoe Sponsorship Power Rankings (September 2025 Edition).
What Are The Shoe Brand Sponsorship Power Rankings?
These rankings are my way of taking the pulse on which shoe brands are showing up at the top of the world’s biggest trail races.
Think of it like sports writers’ weekly power rankings. I wanted to bring the same energy to trail running.
How Does This Work?
I wrestled with the methodology, but here are the core principles:
Include the biggest, most important races
Prioritize visibility and competition
Use multipliers for majors
Keep it simple and fun
Here’s the system: I logged the top 10 men’s and women’s finishers across 12 marquee races. Scoring is straightforward in that 1st place gets 10 points, 2nd gets 9, and so on down to 1 point for 10th.
To reflect prestige, I added multipliers. For example, a Western States win earns double points (20 instead of 10).
Races included:
Tier 1 (2x): Western States, UTMB
Tier 2 (1.5x): Hardrock, CCC, Black Canyon 100K, Canyons 100K, OCC, Chianti 120K, Broken Arrow 46K
Tier 3 (1x): Broken Arrow 23K, Transgrancanaria, Tarawera 102K
Each runner was matched to a shoe sponsor (or ‘Other/Unsponsored’). I identified sponsors using iRunFar race reports, UTMB live tracking, and athletes’ Instagram accounts1.
Finally, I totaled the points by brand to create the rankings below.
Some Caveats
This exercise isn’t perfect. There’s always some subjectivity.
Sponsorship Associations (as of September 2025)
Athletes may switch, add, or drop sponsors mid-season, but I didn’t audit contracts at the exact date of each race. I accounted for the only major example I’m aware of that could impact these rankings: Riley Brady won Black Canyon before signing with Nike, so I did not credit Nike with these points.
Race Selection
The foundation was clear. Western States, UTMB, and Hardrock as the big three 100-milers. From there, I added WSER Golden Ticket races, UTMB Finals (CCC, OCC), plus a few I felt had elite, competitive fields (Broken Arrow 23K/46K, Transgrancanaria). I’m sure you could argue for other races, and that’s what the comments are for!
Bias Towards Long Races
I’ll admit my bias. I follow and enjoy the longer stuff (100K/100M). That’s where my attention, and this list, leans. I considered Cocodona (too much of an outlier) and the full Golden Trail Series (too many races), so I compromised by including the Broken Arrow 23K. Not perfect, but something to build on.
Sponsorship vs. Ambassadorship
Sponsorship details are opaque. If an athlete listed a brand in their Instagram profile, I counted it. Some of these deals mean real contracts, while others are just free shoes. Without visibility into the financial arrangements, I treated any brand association the same.
The Power Rankings
With all that out of the way, let’s take a look at the rankings!
Honorable Mention
A lot of brands received at least some points, including Merrell (1.5), Scarpa (7), Saucony (9), Scott (9), Anta (9), Inov8 (27), La Sportiva (27), and Kailas Fuga (34.5).
But only 12 could make the official power rankings:
12. norda (47.5 points)
Notable Results: 3rd place at CCC, top 10s at Western States, Black Canyon, Canyons, and Tarawera.
For a brand that didn’t really even exist five years ago, norda is already making waves, including on the feet of 1.9% of the 2025 Western States field.
11. Nnormal (49.5)
Notable Results: Wins at Broken Arrow 23K (men & women), 2nd at Chianti (men), 3rd at Western States (men).
All podiums, nothing else. Kilian Jornet (co-founder) added 3rd at Western States and 2nd at Chianti, while Elhousine Elazzaoui and Joyce Njeru swept the Broken Arrow 23K. Look for Nnormal to continue its momentum into 2026 and beyond.
10. Brooks (55.5)
Notable Results: 2nd at Western States (men), 3rd at Black Canyon 100K (men), 3rd at Broken Arrow 23K (women).
Three podiums, plus the infamous snorkel river crossing, vault Brooks into the top 10.
With Des Linden also testing the trail waters, this could be a brand to watch in 2026.
9. Altra (62.5)
Notable Results: 2nd at Black Canyon 100K (women), 2nd at Canyons 100K (men), 8th at Western States (men), 8th at Hardrock (men).
The 2nd most popular shoe at Western States delivered some strong results, but not enough depth to climb higher. Still scattered top-10s and big races keep Altra solidly in the mix.
8. Craft (66.5)
Notable Results: 2nd at CCC (men), 2nd at Broken Arrow 46K (men), 3rd at Black Canyon 100K (women), 4th at Western States (women).
Quality over quantity. David Sinclair bagged two runner-ups, while EmKay Sullivan (3rd at Black Canyon) and Ida Nilsson (4th at Western States) also turned in incredible races.
7. Nike ACG (85)
Notable Results2: 1st at Western States (men), 1st at Transgrancanaria (men), 3rd place CCC (men), 4th place Broken Arrow 23k (men and women).
Wins at Western States and TGC by Caleb Olson, plus a full rebrand to ACG, mark a big year for Nike. With the Ultrafly and Radical AirFlow kit dropping in 2026, expect more fireworks.
6. On (100.5)
Notable Results: 1st at Hardrock (women), 2nd and 3rd at Broken Arrow 23K (men), 2nd and 3rd at Transgrancanaria (women), 3rd at Hardrock (men), 4th at Western States (men), 4th at Canyons 100K (men), 3rd at Tarawera (men), 9th at UTMB (women).
Quietly building one of the sport’s deepest rosters (Katie Schide, Germain Grangier, Jeff Mogavero), On is delivering at major races. Their new CloudUltra Pro is already a favorite among trail runners.
5. Asics (102)
Notable Results: 1st and 2nd at UTMB (men), 4th at UTMB (women), 3rd at OCC (men and women), 4th at OCC (women).
From afterthought to powerhouse, Asics shocked the trail world with a flurry of podiums, including the men’s top two. A true breakout year.
4. The North Face (116.5)
Notable Results: Wins at Black Canyon 100K (men) and Broken Arrow 46k (women), 3rd at UTMB (men), multiple top 5s at Hardrock, Transgrancanaria, and Chianti.
A deep roster paid off. Seth Ruhling’s course record win at Black Canyon, Jenn Lichter’s Broken Arrow masterclass, and Josh Wade’s UTMB/TGC podiums highlight TNF’s strong year.
3. Salomon (139)
Notable Results: 1st at OCC (women), 1st and 2nd at Chianti (women), plus podiums and top-10s at Western States, Hardrock, UTMB, and CCC.
Still thriving in Europe’s mountain races, Salomon also placed two women in the Western States top 10. But with new challengers rising, can they hold ground on the more runnable U.S. courses?
2. Adidas TERREX (236)
Notable Results: Multiple wins at Western States, UTMB, Tarawera, Canyons, and Broken Arrow, plus a slew of top 5 and top 10 finishes.
TERREX crushed 2025, stacking wins at nearly every major event. Their heavy investment in trail is paying off, positioning them as HOKA’s biggest challenger.
1. HOKA (301)
Notable Results: Wins at Hardrock (men), CCC (men & women), OCC (men), Canyons (men), Chianti (men), plus numerous podiums across UTMB, OCC, Hardrock, and Western States.
No surprise here. Despite a (relatively) shaky Western States, HOKA remains king, powered by deep investment, global presence, and title sponsorships at UTMB and Western States. The throne is still theirs while the brand continues to see record growth.
Thoughts?
Which brand(s) surprised you the most?
Which races would you add to the formula?
Drop your thoughts in the comments. Looking forward to reading!
The Aid Station
Miscellaneous quick hits. Trail style. Actionable, digestible, essential.
😟 Joyline Chepngeno Tests Positive for a Banned Substance
In an unfortunate piece of trail running news, Sierre-Zinal and OCC champion Joyline Chepngeno recently tested positive for a banned substance.
Her recent race results have been nullified and her sponsorship agreement with Salomon was terminated.
As I wrote in a previous Trail Waves article, I think it’s important for sponsors to hold a hard line when it comes to sponsorship arrangements, and I applaud Salomon for their decisive action. This scenario is another reminder that we need robust, scalable, and effective anti-doping policies in trail running ASAP.
📞 Altra Trail Running Conversation from VF Corp Q1 FY 2026 Earnings Call
According to the most recent VF Corp (parent company of Altra and The North Face) earnings call, management sounds optimistic on Altra as a future growth driver. Here’s the exact discussion:
“Let me point to Altra, in this case, which had another strong quarter of well over 20% and has grown from $60 million of revenue, when we bought it, to being on track to exceed $250 million this year, and that size with less than 10% awareness in the US and much lower than that in the rest of the world. This is the kind of business that we can scale. It's already tied for the number one shoe in trail running in the US and one of the fastest growing franchises in the road running business.”
It’s promising to see public companies calling out trail running as a key aspect of their growth.
I assume most runners would list their primary shoe sponsor on their Instagram profile.
Riley Brady’s Black Canyon victory is not credit to Nike because they signed with Nike after Black Canyon. Had these points been credited to Nike, they would have moved up to 6th place.
Fun thought process. Altra would have been higher if you'd have included TDS? Adding Laverado, Marathon du Mont Blanc, Sierre Zinal, and Zegama as the "premium" Euro races.