By Paul Nicholson
November 22 – Adidas has extended its partnership and sponsorship with FIFA through to 2030 in a massive 16-year extension of a deal that first saw them come together for the World Cup in Mexico in 1970.
The partnership has already been one of the most enduring in sport and has been a backbone of FIFA’s ability to organise its events and run various development programmes around the world, while at the same time the sponsorship has been the core driver of the adidas football business.
The partnership agreement grants adidas the Official Partner, Supplier and Licensee rights for the FIFA World Cup™ and all FIFA events until 2030.
The agreement also gives adidas licensing and marketing rights around the FIFA World Cup. Adidas will continue to supply the Official Match Ball of the FIFA World Cup and provide uniforms for thousands of volunteers. The official launch of the Brazuca – the ball for the 2014 World Cup in Brazil – takes place around the time of the World Cup draw early December in Brazil.
No figure has been put on the value of the deal, though the last adidas deal for the 2010 and 2014 World Cup tournaments was reckoned to be worth $350 million.
The new agreement takes in four World Cups and emphasises how important they have become to the adidas business.
The company recently reported a third quarter drop in net profit by 8.1% to €316 million, with sales down 7% to €3.88 billion and operating profit down 6% to €463 million. But they said this was in line with expectations and to expect a bumper World Cup year in 2014.
The World Cup is predicted to provide a massive revenue boost in the region of $2.7 billion for adidas’ football-related sales.
Adidas will make available a wide range of adidas/FIFA World Cup licensed products worldwide. The company has similar rights to all other FIFA tournaments during this time period, including the FIFA Women’s World Cup and the FIFA U-20 World Cup.
Adidas will continue to support initiatives such as FIFA Goal and the FIFA Football for Hope adidas Exchange Programme. Through FIFA Goal, adidas and FIFA have made more than 150,000 FIFA Goal balls available to football federations since 2008. The Football for Hope adidas Exchange Programme organises workshops and coaching seminars specifically targeted to the needs of community-based organisations.
Thierry Weil, marketing director of FIFA, said: “Without the support of long-term partners such as adidas, it would simply not be possible for FIFA to host global spectacles such as the FIFA World Cup and to continue our work to develop football worldwide,”
Herbert Hainer, CEO of the adidas Group, said at the formal announcement of the deal in Moscow: “We are happy and proud that our close relationship with FIFA will continue. This unique partnership and our extensive presence at all FIFA World Cups will help us to expand adidas’ position as the leading football brand worldwide.”
Adidas is one of six top-tier FIFA World Cup partners and the new deal will make them easily the longest serving with no other partner having committed through to 2030. Coca-Cola and Hyundai have extended their deals through to the Qatar 2022 World Cup. Second-tier sponsor Budweiser has similarly extended its sponsorship.
FIFA earned $1.072 billion in marketing revenue from the 2010 World Cup.
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