Mr. Splash Carwash ties brand to Wisconsin Badgers in multi-year sports deal
The Wisconsin express chain will host athlete appearances, run in-game promotions and tap NIL opportunities as it defends local turf against national chains.
By The Car Wash News Staff
3 min read
Mr. Splash Carwash, a locally owned express operator in Wisconsin, has signed a multi-year partnership with Badger Sports Properties to become an official partner of Wisconsin Athletics. The agreement includes name, image and likeness opportunities with University of Wisconsin student-athletes, according to reporting from Professional Carwashing & Detailing.
The deal gives the chain a presence at Badgers events during the academic year, player appearances at its wash sites, and a digital video series featuring Wisconsin athletes. CEO Jeff Joos framed the move as a way for a regional operator to stand out as national brands enter its market. "Wisconsin is home for us," Joos said.
What the partnership includes
The centerpiece of the agreement is a series of UW Takeover Days, where Badgers student-athletes will visit Mr. Splash locations to meet customers while they wash their cars. The first Takeover Day is set for Sunday, Nov. 8, at the company's East Washington Ave. location in Madison, with further details promised on the company website.
Beyond the on-site appearances, Mr. Splash will carry an in-game presence at Badgers events throughout the year and produce digital video content built around Wisconsin athletes. The NIL component lets the company compensate individual student-athletes for their participation, a tool that has become increasingly common for regional businesses seeking to associate with college programs.
Mr. Splash opened its East Washington Ave. site this year, its second in Madison and eighth across southern Wisconsin. The company runs a tiered pricing model that includes an unlimited monthly membership, along with free vacuums and prep stations at every location.
A pattern of local tie-ins
The Wisconsin Athletics deal joins an existing roster of community partnerships for the chain, including the Madison Mallards and Night Mares, the Beloit Sky Carp and YMCA youth sports. Joos positioned the strategy as pairing expansion with visible local investment, noting that each location is staffed by people who live in the surrounding community.
The approach reflects a competitive calculation. As national and regional chains continue to open sites in southern Wisconsin, Mr. Splash is leaning on local identity and recognizable community touchpoints to differentiate itself from larger operators that lack the same roots.
Why it matters for operators
Sports sponsorships and NIL arrangements are becoming a practical marketing channel for multi-site operators who want to defend home turf against better-capitalized competitors. The value here is not just logo placement at games but repeated, in-person engagement: athlete visits bring foot traffic to specific sites and give members a reason to show up on a given day.
Operators weighing a similar move should note how Mr. Splash structured the deal around tangible activations rather than passive advertising. Takeover Days drive measurable visits, a video series extends the content beyond game days, and the local framing reinforces membership loyalty. For a chain selling unlimited monthly plans, deepening the emotional connection between the brand and the community can reduce churn and justify the sponsorship spend.
The tradeoff is cost and coordination. NIL deals require clear agreements with athletes and compliance with program rules, and on-site events demand staffing and logistics. Operators considering college or minor-league partnerships should start with a single flagship location, measure traffic and membership lift, then decide whether to scale across the fleet.
