TackleBar™ Partners with Riddell to Advance Game of Football

(St. Paul, MN) – Oct. 3, 2019 – TackleBar™ Football, and Riddell, the football head protection leader, have entered a strategic partnership designed to advance and grow the game of football. Riddell’s team of direct sales representatives will help expand awareness and accelerate adoption of TackleBar with coaches and league administrators so more athletes will benefit from the use of the tackling tool.

The TackleBar technology, worn with traditional football equipment, includes a harness that is attached around players’ midsections and holds two removable foam bars on the lower back. The TackleBar design teaches and requires players to use proper tackling technique while engaging ball carriers and then ripping off a foam bar to end the play.

With this approach, players learn to refine their technique without tackling to the ground. TackleBar teaches proper skills and sound fundamentals, preparing youth players for an eventual transition into tackle football. At the high school and college football level, programs use TackleBar as a tool in practice to refine technique and teach tackling without added contact and impact exposure.

“We are excited to establish a partnership with a company that has the expertise and proven success of Riddell,” said TackleBar CEO Tim Healy. “TackleBar offers a modified game, which will be appealing to coaches and league administrators that Riddell representatives are working closely with. Their passion for football, dedication to advancing this great game, and commitment to player safety make them a perfect partner. By working together, we look forward to expanding TackleBar’s presence to teams and leagues in all 50 states and beyond.”

TackleBar, debuted in 2016, was created to ensure kids continue to have an entry point into football that is authentic, technically sound, and safer. The modified game it creates is embraced by football coaches, parents and kids, as well as former NFL players. Since its launch, TackleBar has seen double-digit growth each year with participating leagues. TackleBar is used by teams and leagues in 27 states, and internationally, serving as an ideal option for transitioning between flag and tackle football.

“Our strategic partnership with TackleBar makes this coaching tool and modified game more accessible to coaches and athletes, which is sure to provide an improved experience for everyone involved,” said Kyle Borland, Vice President of Sales for Riddell. “Riddell is committed to advancing the game of football through innovation in protective equipment.”

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About TackleBar:

TackleBar Football is a modified game that preserves the tradition and spirit of football while providing an ideal transition between flag football and tackle football. The TackleBar harness teaches safer contact and sound fundamentals, while providing kids an authentic football experience that decreases injuries and increases participation. Since 2016, TackleBar has been used by youth football leagues as a game format, and by high school and college programs as a tool for teaching safer contact. TackleBar was a finalist in the NFL’s First and Future competition in 2019, and is endorsed by the Minnesota Vikings. Learn more at: tacklebar.com

About Riddell

Riddell is a premier designer and developer of football helmets, protective sports equipment, head impact monitoring technologies, apparel and related accessories. A recognized leader in helmet technology and innovation, Riddell is the leading manufacturer of football helmets and shoulder pads, and a top provider of reconditioning services (cleaning, repairing, repainting and recertifying existing equipment). For more information, visit our website at http://www.riddell.com/, like the Riddell Facebook page, or follow Riddell on Instagram and Twitter @RiddellSports.