Phil Knight
Co-founder and chairman emeritus of Nike
Phil Knight is the American entrepreneur who co-founded Nike, starting in 1964 as Blue Ribbon Sports with his former coach Bill Bowerman. He led the company as chief executive until 2004 and as chairman until 2016, turning it into the world's leading sports brand, and is now Nike's chairman emeritus.
| Role | Co-founder and chairman emeritus of Nike |
|---|---|
| Organisation | Nike |
| Founded | 1964 (Blue Ribbon Sports) |
| CEO until | 2004 |
| Chairman until | 2016 |
| Born | 1938, Portland, Oregon |
Who is Phil Knight?
Philip Hampson Knight, born in Portland, Oregon, in 1938, is the co-founder of Nike. He is listed by Nike as chairman emeritus, and the company's global headquarters in Beaverton, Oregon, is named the Philip H. Knight Campus. His career is one of the defining stories of the sportswear and footwear business.
Career
Knight studied business at the University of Oregon, where he ran track under coach Bill Bowerman, and earned an MBA from Stanford Graduate School of Business. In 1964 he and Bowerman founded Blue Ribbon Sports, which began by importing running shoes made by the Japanese company Onitsuka Tiger.
In 1971 the company introduced the Nike brand and the Swoosh logo, and Blue Ribbon Sports later took the Nike name. Nike went public in 1980. Knight served as chief executive until November 2004 and remained chairman of the board until he retired from it in 2016, after which he became chairman emeritus.
In 2016 he published Shoe Dog, a memoir of Nike's early years that became a widely read business book.
Knight is also one of the largest philanthropists in the United States. In 2025 he and his wife Penny pledged 2 billion US dollars to the Knight Cancer Institute at Oregon Health & Science University, and in September 2026 they committed 1 billion US dollars to the University of Oregon to create the Knight College of Engineering.
Influence on the fashion business
- Brand building: turned a shoe distributor into one of the most recognised consumer brands in the world.
- Athlete marketing: established the athlete endorsement and storytelling approach that defines sports marketing.
- Sourcing model: a design and marketing company that relies on contract manufacturers, a structure widely adopted in apparel and footwear.
- Sport meets fashion: helped bring performance footwear and apparel into everyday fashion.
Nike's influence now extends well beyond sport. Sneakers and sportswear are a major category for fashion retailers and luxury houses alike, and collaborations between sportswear brands and designers have become a fixture of the fashion calendar. Much of this market can be traced back to the brand Knight built.
Why it matters
Knight's career shows how a small import business can be turned into a global brand through relentless focus on product, marketing and distribution. Nike's model of combining in-house design and marketing with outsourced manufacturing has shaped how many apparel and footwear companies are organised. As chairman emeritus he remains a symbolic figure for the company, which is now led by president and chief executive Elliott Hill.
Frequently asked questions
Who founded Nike?
Nike was co-founded by Phil Knight and his former track coach Bill Bowerman in 1964 as Blue Ribbon Sports. The Nike brand and Swoosh logo were introduced in 1971.
What is Phil Knight's role at Nike today?
Phil Knight is chairman emeritus of Nike. He was chief executive until 2004 and chairman of the board until 2016.