As Football Returns, Riddell’s Commitment to Player Protection Continues

The start of the NFL season is a moment millions of fans look forward to each year. It brings rivalries back to life, fills stadiums and living rooms, and reminds us why football holds such an important place in communities across the country.

For Riddell, the beginning of a new season also reinforces our responsibility to protect athletes who play the game at every level. From NFL sidelines to youth huddles and high school fields on Friday nights, players count on equipment designed with purpose, tested with rigor, and continuously improved through innovation.

That approach has shaped Riddell’s work for decades. Our commitment to player protection is grounded in evidence: data from the field, testing in the lab, and close collaboration with the football community. More than 16 million on-field head impacts captured through our proprietary smart helmet technology, InSite, have helped deepen our understanding of the game and continue to inform how we design, test, and refine our helmets.

This connection between real-world data and helmet development is central to Riddell’s approach to innovation. Axiom3D has topped the NFL & NFLPA’s independent laboratory helmet ratings for three consecutive seasons, while Tru-Fit technology and the Axiom platform reflect Riddell’s continued focus on advancing helmet design and performance.

Innovation matters most when it leads to better information and better decisions to protect our athletes.

Beyond the millions of impacts collected through InSite Analytics, the data from practices and games are used to provide actionable insights. With Riddell's impact-sensing technology now standard in every helmet equipped with Riddell’s Tru-Fit system, InSite Analytics is used by more than 3,000 programs—from high school teams to the highest levels of the game—giving coaches and athletic trainers increased visibility into head impact exposure to help identify trends, inform tackling techniques and practice planning, and support more informed, athlete-first decisions.

Improved helmet design, insights from the field, and informed decision-making are each important on their own. Together, they represent how meaningful progress in player protection is made.

As football returns, Riddell remains focused on the same standard that guides our work every day: protection as a continuous pursuit, grounded in data, tested in the lab, and proven on the field.

About Riddell

Riddell was founded with a goal of giving back to the football community while advancing and improving athlete protection through advanced technologies. As the long-standing leader in football head protection and protective athletic equipment for 95 years, Riddell is leading the game to a strong future by creating a path to next generation protection through products and services such as Riddell Axiom and InSite Analytics. Riddell also offers best-in-class reconditioning services to help ensure athletes have access to clean, sanitized, and recertified equipment. Off the field, Riddell’s licensed collectibles business is regarded as the cornerstone of football collectibles for fans and collectors of college and the NFL. For more information, visit www.riddell.com or follow @RiddellSports on Instagram, X, TikTok, Facebook, LinkedIn, and YouTube.