Certor Sports, the parent company of the Schutt and Vicis football helmet brands, and Guardian Sports, the maker of the Guardian Cap, have inked a new strategic alliance aligned with a “shared passion for safety and providing protective performance to all football players through advanced technologies and continued innovation.”

Schutt and Vicis are innovators in helmet safety and technology to better protect quarterbacks and linemen from the impacts typically absorbed by those positions, respectively, across the NFL, college and youth games.

“Certor Sports admires and appreciates any company who is committed to developing protective technologies, and Guardian Sports is clearly in this category. While we remain highly confident in our industry-leading Schutt and Vicis helmet technologies, we fully support any player, parent or coach who chooses to utilize the Guardian Cap additional protective device to further their confidence in the safety of the sport,” said Jeremy Erspamer, president and CEO, Certor Sports.

“We encourage continuous innovation and believe that all participants should do their research and choose the protective equipment that best meets their personal preferences. In doing so, we are formally stating, under NOCSAE regulations, all Schutt and Vicis helmets worn in practice or games with a properly installed Guardian Cap remain fully certified and warrantied should the player, parent or coach choose to do so and if allowable by applicable league regulations,” continued Erspamer.

Guardian Sports introduced the Guardian Cap, its flagship product, in 2012. The Guardian Cap is a universally sized soft-shell device that fits over football helmets to reduce impact and re-direct rotational forces through its patented technology.

Guardian Sports offers the following data:

  • Guardian Caps are used by over 500,000 youth, high school, and college athletes and are mandated for practice by the NFL and CFL.
  • In 2024, Caps were used by 92 percent of the Top 25 NCAA teams, including 11 of the 12 college football playoff teams.
  • The NFL released post-season data that showed concussion rates among players mandated to wear Guardian Caps dropped over 50 percent compared to their previous three-year average.
  • Jeff Miller, the NFL’s executive vice president of Health & Safety, stated, “The performance of the Caps exceeded our expectations.” The NFL expanded Guardian Cap usage in 2024 to allow players to wear Guardian Caps in games.

Erin Hanson, founder and CEO, Guardian Sports, added, “The mission of Guardian Sports has always been a relentless pursuit to make the game safer, and teaming up with Certor Sports is a perfect match. With the partnership of leading brands Schutt and Vicis, and the related certification of a combination of our technologies, we’re able to broaden the availability of Guardian Caps and the best-performing helmets to players across the world. We will also work closely to co-develop even more advanced technologies and solutions moving forward. By combining Certor Sports’ world-class helmet technology with the Guardian Cap’s innovative soft-shell design, this partnership represents a bold step forward in the mission to protect football players everywhere.”

Image courtesy Guardian Cap